Rose Docherty was arrested outside the same hospital in February 2025.
14:59, 27 Sep 2025Updated 15:33, 27 Sep 2025
The case against Rose Docherty following her first arrest was dropped by prosecutors.(Image: Daily Record)
A 75-year-old woman has been arrested for a second time after protesting against abortion outside a hospital in Glasgow.
Rose Docherty was previously arrested under a new law introduced this year which created buffer zones around clinics in Scotland.
On Wednesday, September 24, she was protesting on Hardgate Road, outside the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, holding a placard which read: “Coercion is a crime, here to talk, only if you want.”
Police have said she will appear in court at a later date, after being charged under the Safe Access Zone legislation.
She had previously been arrested under the legislation, though proceedings did not continue, reports the BBC. The Crown Office said they ‘reserve the right’ to take proceedings in the future.
Ms Docherty said in a statement: “Everybody has the right to engage in consensual conversation.
“I held my sign with love and compassion, inviting anyone who wants to chat, to do so – and stood peacefully, not approaching anyone.
“I should not be treated as a criminal for inviting people to chat with me – lending a listening ear. Conversation is not forbidden on the streets of Glasgow, and yet this is the second time I have been arrested for doing just that.”
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The Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Act came into effect in September last year, a month before the introduction of similar legislation in England and Wales.
It was drawn up by Scottish Green MSP Gillian Mackay. Under the law, protestors who come within 200m of clinics face fines of up to £10,000.
It made it a criminal offence to stop women and staff from entering the buffer zones, or act in a way which could influence their decisions to access services within them.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 1.50pm on Wednesday, 24 September 2025, we were called to a report of a small protest on Hardgate Road in Glasgow.
“Officers attended and a 75-year-old woman was arrested and charged in connection with a breach of the Safe Access Zone legislation. She is due to appear in court at a later date.”