A court has convicted a British army veteran of violating a “buffer zone” around an abortion clinic after he prayed silently within the boundary. Source: OSV News.
Adam Smith-Connor was given a conditional discharge – in which a fine or prison sentence will be imposed if he repeats his offence in the next two years – and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £9000 ($A17,500).
The judgment of the Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole Council, or court, on England’s south coast, represents the first time anyone has been convicted for praying silently outside an abortion facility in the UK.
The court on Tuesday decided that his posture had expressed “disapproval for abortion,” noting that his hands were joined in prayer and his head was bowed solemnly.
Afterward, Mr Smith-Connor said, “Today, the court has decided that certain thoughts – silent thoughts – can be illegal in the United Kingdom. That cannot be right. All I did was pray to God, in the privacy of my own mind – and yet I stand convicted as a criminal.
“I served for 20 years in the army reserves, including a tour in Afghanistan, to protect the fundamental freedoms that this country is built upon,” he said in a statement published on the website of ADF UK, the Christian human rights organisation that supported him legally.
He added, “I continue that spirit of service as a health care professional and church volunteer. It troubles me greatly to see our freedoms eroded to the extent that thought-crimes are now being prosecuted in the UK.”
Jeremiah Igunnubole, legal counsel for ADF UK, described the ruling as “a legal turning point of immense proportions.”
“A man has been convicted today because of the content of his thoughts – his prayers to God – on the public streets of England,” he said.
“We can hardly sink any lower in our neglect of basic fundamental freedoms of free speech and thought,” he continued. “We will look closely at the judgment and are considering options to appeal. Human rights are for all people – no matter their view on abortion.”
FULLS TORY
British court convicts man for silent prayer in front of abortion clinic (By Simon Caldwell, OSV News)
