{"id":21116,"date":"2023-02-13T10:58:11","date_gmt":"2023-02-13T10:58:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adf.uk\/?p=10412"},"modified":"2024-01-26T13:27:35","modified_gmt":"2024-01-26T12:27:35","slug":"priest-in-court","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/en-gb\/news\/priest-in-court","title":{"rendered":"THOUGHT TRIAL #2: Priest in court THIS THURSDAY following charges for praying for free speech"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul style=\"text-align: left;\">\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">VERDICT ANTICIPATED: Father Sean Gough will appear before Birmingham Magistrates\u2019 Court on THURSDAY 16 February, alongside Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, who was arrested for silent prayer in viral video<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Catholic Priest was criminally charged after holding a \u201cpraying for free speech\u201d sign in a Birmingham abortion facility censorship zone<\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>SUPPORT FREE SPEECH: Supporters invited to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.adf.uk\/support-fr-sean\">sign open letter<\/a> to the Home Secretary to highlight the consequences of censorship zones before national rollout<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">BIRMINGHAM (13 February 2023) <\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">&#8211; The Catholic Priest <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/adf.uk\/isabel-case-update\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">charged<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\"> for silent prayer within the censorship zone of a Birmingham abortion facility will appear before Birmingham Magistrates\u2019 Court <strong>this Thursday, 16<\/strong><\/span><strong>th February.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">For peacefully supporting free speech within the censorship zone, Father Sean Gough was charged with \u201cintimidating service-users\u201d of the abortion facility. This was despite the fact that all this happened while the abortion facility was closed.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">A further charge related to parking his car, which for some time has had on it a small \u201cunborn lives matter\u201d bumper sticker, within the same area.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Father Gough will appear in court alongside Isabel Vaughan-Spruce \u2013 the charity volunteer seen in a viral video to be searched and arrested by three police officers on account of her silent prayer.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201c<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">I could never have imagined that as a priest, I would have to endure a legal battle simply for praying \u2013 and believing that both lives matter in a pregnancy. My Christian beliefs, prayers, and expressions of support for free speech are entirely peaceful and lawful. I have dedicate much of my ministry to supporting women impacted by abortion and did not believe I was breaking any laws by praying near the abortion facility, especially while it was closed. I\u2019m glad to have a court date set and look forward to the opportunity to clear my name on Thursday,\u201d commented Father Sean ahead of his hearing at Birmingham Magistrates\u2019 Court.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Censorship Zones result in multiple prayer charges<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0The area surrounding the facility nearby which Father Gough prayed has been covered by a local <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.birmingham.gov.uk\/downloads\/file\/24121\/robert_clinic_station_road_b30\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Public Spaces Protection Order<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\"> (PSPO), in force since November, which prohibits prayer, distributing information about pregnancy help services, and other activities considered to constitute \u201cprotest\u201d.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">When police officers initially approached the priest holding the \u201cpraying for free speech sign\u201d, they told Father Gough that they did not think that he was breaking rules. However, the priest was later invited for interview at the police station, interrogated on his actions, and eventually criminally charged.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">The Crown Prosecution Service subsequently dropped the charges against Father Gough due to \u201cinsufficient evidence\u201d, but made clear that the charges \u201cmay well start again\u201d in the near future subject to further evidential review. This is a warning prosecutors can issue when they expect that further evidence will be received. Father Gough pursued a verdict in court in order to end this state of legal ambiguity and to clear his name.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cIt\u2019s remarkable that in 2023, in the UK, upstanding people are embroiled in criminal proceedings, all because they prayed in their minds. <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Father Sean was charged for an old \u201cUnborn Lives Matter\u201d bumper sticker and for making it clear that he was praying for free speech &#8211; and this case only makes clear that more prayers are needed\u00a0 &#8211; coupled with concrete legislative changes to stymie the concerning downward trajectory of free speech protections in the UK,\u201d said <\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Ryan Christopher, Director of ADF UK, who are supporting the case.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cBoth Isabel and Father Sean have a history of going above and beyond to charitably serve women in crisis pregnancy, young mothers, and people who have been impacted by abortion. This censorial PSPO regulation has resulted in both being unjustly punished for their thoughts and beliefs in an unjust and completely unnecessary legal process. Westminster should pay close attention to these consequences before rolling out buffer zones across England and Wales,\u201d he continued.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">ADF UK have invited supporters of Father Sean and Isabel Vaughan-Spruce to sign an open letter to Home Secretary Suella Braverman, asking her to protect free speech, thought and peaceful offers of charitable help near abortion facilities. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adf.uk\/support-fr-sean\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">www.adf.uk\/support-fr-sean<\/span><\/a><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Priest interrogated, charged with breaching censorship zone, which prohibits prayer and the sharing of pregnancy support information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":21213,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[736],"tags":[943,899,909,898],"class_list":["post-21116","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-fr-sean-en-gb","tag-free-speech-en-gb","tag-religious-freedom-en-gb","tag-uk-en-gb"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - 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