ADF International
CV NEWS FEED // During the criminal trial of Livia Tossici-Bolt, a retired scientist charged for holding a sign offering to talk near an abortion clinic, police officers admitted that she did not harass or intimidate anyone.
The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International reported March 6 that Tossici-Bolt, 63, was charged for violating the Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO), which prohibits harassment, intimidation, and “engaging in an act of approval or disapproval, with respect to issues related to abortion services” within 150 meters (approximately 493 feet) of an abortion clinic.
Officer Rukan Taki, who was present when Tossici-Bolt was fined, stated that he did not think she should have been standing in the buffer zone; however, he added, he did not see her harass or intimidate anyone. He also acknowledged that a consensual conversation does not amount to harassment or intimidation.
Officer Francesca Alice Ozanne, who was also present, stated that while Tossici-Bolt was standing with her sign, she did not see anybody enter or exit the clinic.
During her defense, Tossici-Bolt explained that she decided to stand outside with the sign after a period of lockdown and social isolation. Her sign led to several conversations, and one individual even invited her over for tea after the conversation.
As CatholicVote previously reported, Tossici-Bolt had refused to pay her Fixed Penalty notice, as she had the right to offer consensual conversations in public.
