Scotland’s First Arrest Under Abortion Buffer Zone Law Sparks Outcry Over Free Speech
by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – A 74-year-old grandmother arrested under Scotland’s newly enacted abortion “buffer zone” law is pushing back against proposed expansions, warning the legislation is being used to “crack down harshly and unfairly” on peaceful pro-life voices.
Rose Docherty became the first person charged under the Abortion Services Act 2024 after standing silently outside Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow this past February. Holding a sign that read, “Coercion is a crime, here to talk, only if you want,” Docherty says she intended to offer a listening ear–not intimidation.
“I gave consideration to what I was doing … I looked at the law and saw what it said I couldn’t do,” Docherty told the Scotcast podcast from BBC Scotland. “And thought … I can offer to listen, and if anyone wants to come and speak to me, they can do so, only if they want to come and speak with me.”
The act, introduced by Scottish Green Party Member of Parliament Gillian Mackay and implemented in September 2024, prohibits any conduct deemed to be “influencing the decision of another person to access, provide or facilitate the provision of abortion services” within 200 meters of designated clinics. It also criminalizes behavior that causes “harassment, alarm, or distress” in that context.
“There was nothing in my conduct or sign that could reasonably be considered harassing, alarming, and distressing,” Docherty insisted in a separate conversation with Christian legal advocacy group ADF International.
Mackay praised law enforcement’s swift response to Docherty’s arrest, stating, “I am grateful to Police Scotland for acting so quickly … This kind of intimidation has no place in a modern or progressive Scotland.”
Mackay has since proposed expanding the zones due to ongoing pro-life demonstrations just outside the protected boundaries. “I think it’s appropriate that we take those concerns seriously and the government take a look at whether an extension is appropriate or not,” she said. However, she acknowledged that any expansion must be justified by ministers first.
Docherty is skeptical of the government’s intentions, suggesting pro-lifers will be targeted regardless of distance. “It wouldn’t matter where we stood—201 meters or 500 meters away—it seems the authorities would still try to crack down harshly and unfairly on individuals because the government simply disagrees with their point of view. This is unjust.”
Concerns about the law’s scope have grown as similar arrests mount across the UK. In England, Isabel Vaughan-Spruce was arrested twice for praying silently near abortion clinics. In Northern Ireland, a retired Baptist pastor was charged after preaching a sermon on John 3:16 within a buffer zone.
ADF International’s Scottish spokesperson, Lois McLatchie Miller, says the buffer zone law stifles fundamental rights. “The ‘buffer zones’ law is fundamentally flawed when it comes to undermining basic freedoms of speech, thought, and religion,” Miller said. “We all stand firmly against harassment, which is already illegal–but the law goes far beyond that in preventing people from praying or holding consensual conversations in large public areas of Scotland.”
The Scottish government confirmed that ministers can expand buffer zones if current protections are insufficient. In a controversial moment during Scotcast, Mackay was asked whether “performative prayer” through a window could be considered a violation. Her response: “It depends on who’s passing the window.”
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