A judge has dismissed criminal charges against a Christian grandmother who was arrested after holding a sign that read “coercion is a crime, here to talk, only if you want” outside a Glasgow hospital’s abortion buffer zone.
Rose Docherty, 75, was the first person to face prosecution under Scotland’s buffer zone law, introduced in 2025.
The ruling has been hailed as a “free speech victory” by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which co-ordinated Docherty’s legal defence.
Sheriff Stuart Reid dismissed two charges of alleged “influencing” within a buffer zone, in the vicinity of Queen Elizabeth University Hospital last September. She did not approach anyone or speak to anyone about abortion, ADF has said.
Prosecutors “failed to disclose an offence known to the law of Scotland”, Sheriff Reid concluded in his judgement yesterday, as they were unable to say whether Docherty had "influenced" anyone in the zone. Her legal team made the case that her Article 10 right to freedom of expression, under the European Convention on Human Rights, had been infringed.
Reacting to the verdict, Docherty said it was a “major victory for free speech in Scotland and the UK”, showing that “peacefully offering consensual conversation on a public street, which is all I have ever done, can never be a crime.
“Even though the verdict was a victory, the process in this case became a form of punishment for me. I was arrested last September and have faced seven months of criminal proceedings, merely for exercising my free speech rights. This should never happen in a free society.
“My case shows how ‘buffer zones’ are used by authorities to impose censorship. ‘Buffer zone’ legislation must be repealed in Scotland and across the UK to ensure it is not misused to target peaceful and lawful expression again in the future, as has now happened to me twice.
“The resources used by the authorities to target me, a 75-year-old grandmother, for offering to speak with people, have been totally wasted. Authorities should focus on tackling real crime in Glasgow, not censoring a Catholic grandmother.”
Docherty added that she was grateful for the “support and prayers”.
Her charge had attracted international attention. American Vice President JD Vance raised concerns about the buffer zone law’s impact on freedom of speech, with the US State Department describing it as “another egregious example of the tyrannical suppression of free speech happening across Europe”.
The Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Act 2024 applies to 30 abortion providers, creating exclusion zones within a 200-metre radius around abortion facilities and restricts behaviour considered capable of “influencing” others on abortion.
Scottish health minister Jenni Minto described the law as “a crucial milestone in protecting women’s abortion rights” when it was introduced, adding that “no one has the right to interfere in women’s personal medical decisions”.
Jeremiah Igunnubole, ADF’s barrister, described it as a “significant victory for freedom of expression in the United Kingdom”.
After her arrest, Docherty was held in custody for several hours. She was refused a chair to sit on in her cell, despite making it known that she had a double hip replacement.