A 72-year-old preacher from South Wales may be imprisoned after he shared a Bible verse in a “buffer zone.”
“Buffer zones” are part of the Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO), which prohibits prayers and protests outside abortion facilities.
Outside of an abortion clinic in Ealing, West London, Stephen Green held a sign reading, “For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb.”
The verse is found in Psalm 139:13.
Legal action was taken against Green under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
If Green is found to be guilty, he may face up to six months in prison and be fined £1,000, or about $1,200, according to Christianity Daily.
Green said that he views the prosecution as “an attack on the Bible and free speech. I am determined to defend myself and fight for justice.”
American Faith reported in September that British police dropped charges against Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, who was arrested twice for silently praying outside abortion clinics.
Rather than choosing to drop the charges, the police let the case expire.
UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman wrote in an open letter that “silent prayer, within itself, is not unlawful” and “holding lawful opinions, even if those opinions may offend others, is not a criminal offense.”
