Be Careful What You Think: In Britain, It Might Be a Crime

'If we truly have the right to freedom of thought, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion, can silent prayer in a public place ever be a crime?'

From The European Conservative

By Paul Coleman

If we truly have the right to freedom of thought, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion, can silent prayer in a public place ever be a crime

It seems oddly mediaeval to convict a man for his prayers.  

But the British courts have defied all reasonable expectations of modern democracy by convicting a man for doing just that on the streets of Bournemouth. 

Adam Smith-Connor is a military veteran who served his country in the reserves in Afghanistan. As part of his medical training, he participated in 30 abortions in 2003—actions he now deeply regrets. Adam converted to Christianity in later life, and is now deeply committed to prayer on the issue. In November 2022, he stopped to pray for a few minutes, in silence, near an abortion facility, remembering a time he had paid for an ex-girlfriend to abort his own child. 

Adam was confronted by officers and grilled as to “the nature” of his prayers. Despite no passerby claiming to have been harmed by Adam’s presence, the content of his silent thoughts was enough to trigger a penalty, leading to two years of criminal proceedings, and three days of trial. The short exchange with the police was caught on film and is worth recounting: 

Police: “We just wanted to come over and say hello, but also just to inquire as to your activities for today.” 

Adam: “Well, I’m praying.” 

Police: “In terms of that, can I ask what is the nature of your prayer today?” 

“What is the nature of your prayer today?” Words I never thought I would hear a police officer say on the streets of Britain. 

Despite being on the brink of bankruptcy, Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole Council—the local authority responsible for the prosecution—poured huge resources into making an example of Adam. In a highly unusual and disproportionate move for a Magistrates’ Court, they hired a King’s Counsel, racking up legal fees of over £110,000 for an offence with a maximum penalty of £1,000.

Meanwhile, the BBC report that the same Council must cut at least 10% of its budget for local services, and is begging the government for money to avoid shutting down special needs services for children. The priorities of these authorities are truly chilling. Worse, they tried to demand £93,000 in costs from Adam following his conviction – a man of humble means with two children to support.

The judge sized this down to £9,000, to be paid in instalments of £250 every month.  

This might have been the most expensive silent prayer of all time. 

In the ruling, the judge laid significant emphasis on the fact that Adam said his head may have been “slightly bowed” and his hands were “clasped”. As it happens, Adam, an ex-serviceman, almost always stands with an “at ease” posture with hands clasped across his middle. Yet this stance was enough for the judge to determine that members of the public would have known that he was praying – and that would amount to breaching a “buffer zone” around the abortion facility, which prohibits “expressions of approval or disapproval of abortion”, including through prayer. How anybody would have known Adam was praying about abortion specifically is a mystery. In fact, nobody knew at all—it was the abortion facility staff, rather than a member of the public—who notified the police about Adam’s presence. 

That a judgment from the law courts of England seriously assessed a man’s “slightly bowed head” and “clasped hands” when determining criminal liability is utterly farcical. Moreover, the focus on posture prevented the court from getting to the root of the matter: If we truly have the right to freedom of thought, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion, can silent prayer in a public place ever be a crime? Or are we now meant to accept that we have those rights, but not in public places and certainly not with bowed heads?  

Adam’s conviction is horrific for him and for his family. His criminal record, his finances and his professional reputation are all impacted by the content of his silent thoughts and prayers. But even more broadly, Adam’s conviction is horrific for the UK, and represents a dark stain on our nation.  

We know legal restrictions on Christian beliefs exist in other countries around the world in order to protect the dominant religion, for example, through blasphemy, apostasy, and anti-conversion laws. But in recent years the West has adopted its own secular versions of these laws, protecting the dominant secular ideologies of our day. This process has moved so quickly that head tilting and hand clasping have become part of the legal argumentation. And with the legislative proposals of the new government, the process shows no signs of abating.  

There is no denying this decision is disheartening and disorienting. And we know it will be an uphill battle ahead. But we cannot—and we will not—stop fighting for the fundamental freedoms that have been hard-won over many centuries. No matter how long it takes and no matter what obstacles we have to overcome.  

If you’d like to join us, visit www.adf.uk/support-adam/.