Retired pastor guilty of abortion buffer zone breach

A retired pastor has said it is a "very dark day for Christian freedom" after being found guilty of breaching abortion buffer zone laws by preaching biblical verses near a hospital.

Clive Johnston, 78, from Melmount Road, Sion Mills in County Tyrone, held an open-air service in a safe access zone within the vicinity of Causeway Hospital on 7 July 2024.

The former President of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland was at Coleraine Magistrates' Court, where the judgement was delivered, on Thursday.

Johnston was convicted of doing an act in a safe access zone with the intent of or being reckless as to whether it had the effect of influencing a protected person attending the premises. He has been fined £450.

He was also found guilty of failing to comply with a direction to leave a safe access zone.

The court was told that at least one protected person was attending the hospital on the day.

Judge Peter King said Johnston had "tested the law to the point where he broke the law."

The £450 fine was for both offences.

The judge said that Johnston was "a man of strong religious belief and good character.

"He is someone who in the past has been publicly associated with anti-abortion views," the judge said.

Coleraine Magistrates' Court was told that Johnston delivered a sermon at the event refraining from any mention of abortion, and that his decision to preach "was motivated by two reasons: to test the legislation and to influence anyone who heard him towards the Bible and the Christian message generally".

The judge added that Johnston deliberately placed himself within a safe access zone whilst being aware that he was at risk of breaching the law and without checking if abortion services were being provided that Sunday.

The court was told at least one protected person was accessing therapeutic aftercare as part of the Northern Trust's abortion service on the day.

The judge refused to refer the case to the court of appeal.

Abortion protest buffer zones came into effect in Northern Ireland in 2023.

The zones mean anti-abortion protests can no longer be held directly outside specific health clinics where abortions are carried out.

New laws created "safe access zones" stopping protesters from gathering at the buildings.

The legislation was passed at Stormont in 2022.

Speaking outside court, the retired pastor said it was "a very dark day for Christian freedom".

He said the open-air service in July 2024 had been "short and brief" and made no reference to abortion.

"And yet the buffer zone legislation is so broad that holding a Sunday service has been found to be a criminal offence.

"At 78 years I find myself for the first time convicted of a crime," he said.

He said during the service in July 2024 he had been preaching about the Bible verse John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Johnston added: "If there was ever a time when those near a hospital or far from a hospital needed to hear that message of hope, today is the day, and today in this court, this was criminalised.

"May this not be the end of the story," he said.

Ciarán Kelly, from The Christian Institute, which has been supporting Johnston, said the conviction was "disappointing".

He said if the ruling is "allowed to stand it will represent a shocking restriction on religious liberty, on freedom of speech".

"We will be working with Clive and his legal team in coming days to consider options for appeal," he said.

Former Green Party assembly member Clare Bailey developed the bill to set up safe access zones outside clinics where abortions are carried out.

Bailey told BBC Radio Ulster's Evening Extra programme that she thought what Johnston had been able to prove "is that the legislation is very effective and very clear and unfortunately has resulted in him receiving a criminal conviction".

She said she did not believe a review of the legislation was required.

"The legislation is about providing safe access to women wanting to seek lawful healthcare and for staff to be able to provide that healthcare, it doesn't mention anything about Christianity either," she added.

"And nothing in what has happened with this court case has altered or prevented anyone from holding any beliefs that they want to."