A judge in Scotland cleared a 75-year-old grandmother of criminal charges Monday (April 27) after her arrest for standing in an abortion clinic “buffer zone” with a sign offering “consensual conversation.”
Sheriff Stuart Reid dismissed two charges of “influencing” against Rose Docherty at Glasgow Sheriff Court. The charges stemmed from a September incident outside Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, where Docherty held a sign reading: “Coercion is a crime, here to talk, only if you want.”
The dismissal follows video footage of four police officers arresting her, with one helping Docherty to crawl into a police van because they were unable to provide a step she requested.
“This is a major victory for free speech in Scotland and the U.K.,” Docherty said after the hearing. “It shows that peacefully offering consensual conversation on a public street can never be a crime.”
Docherty spent more than two hours in a jail cell following her arrest. She described the seven-month legal process as a “form of punishment” for exercising her rights.
“Simply for being available for the lonely, the afraid and the coerced, I have been treated like a violent criminal,” she said.
Reid ruled the charges “irrelevant” and a breach of Docherty’s Article 10 free speech rights. He noted the prosecution failed to disclose an offense known to Scottish law. The court dismissed the case “pro loco et tempore,” meaning prosecutors could technically reopen the matter if they discover new evidence.
During an April 20 hearing, prosecutors admitted they possessed no evidence that Docherty influenced anyone accessing the clinic. Legal counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International, which coordinated Docherty’s defense through the law firm Lindsays, argued the charges were not “prescribed by law” because they failed to identify any person present for abortion services at the time.
“The prosecution of Rose has no place in a free and democratic society,” said Jeremiah Igunnubole, legal counsel for ADF International. “No one should ever be criminalized for peaceful speech, least of all for making a peaceful and consensual offer to speak.”
Igunnubole called the case emblematic of a “deepening free speech crisis” and urged Parliament to repeal buffer zone legislation.
The Scottish law, enacted in 2024, forbids “influencing” anyone within 200 meters (656 feet) of a hospital providing abortion services. Similar legislation exists in England and Wales under the Public Order Act 2023.
Docherty’s case previously gained international attention when U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance highlighted her arrest as a matter of concern during the Munich Security Conference in February 2025.
ADF International maintained that Docherty did not approach individuals, speak about abortion, or engage in harassing behavior. This marked the second time authorities targeted Docherty; police arrested her in February 2025 for similar conduct, though prosecutors did not proceed with that case.
