British police have paid £13,000 in compensation to a Catholic woman who was wrongfully arrested for praying silently outside an abortion clinic.
West Midlands Police conceded claims of two wrongful arrests of Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, along with false imprisonments, assault and battery in relation to an intrusive search, a breach of her human rights and to the onerous bail conditions they imposed on her.
The award is being hailed by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) UK, the legal group that supported Ms Vaughan-Spruce, as a major victory for freedom of speech in what became the first “thought crime” case to occur in the UK for centuries.
