Lone Christian convicted for praying silently in large UK abortion buffer zone
Adam Smith-Conner prays outside the England courthouse where he was convicted of unlawfully praying in an abortion clinic buffer zone.
(Alliance Defending Freedom UK photo)
By Diana Chandler - Posted at Baptist Press:
DORSET COUNTY, England (BP) – An Army veteran and father of three was found guilty Oct. 16 of praying silently in a large abortion buffer zone in England and fined the equivalent of $11,700, Alliance Defending Freedom UK (ADF UK) reported.Adam Smith-Conner could face jail time under the conditional discharge the court granted, his attorneys said, if he commits the same crime within the next two years.
“This is 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,” Smith-Conner’s attorney Jeremiah Igunnubole said in response to the ruling. “We can hardly sink any lower in our neglect of basic fundamental freedoms of free speech and thought. 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.”
The England conviction comes as the United States grapples with the juxtaposition of abortion clinic buffer zones and freedom of speech. The U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to hear at least two cases in its October session that seek to outlaw buffer zones around clinics and around the people accessing them as violations of First Amendment rights.
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