Published:
June 29th, 2017
Two
Christian street preachers have today been acquitted of public order offences,
after being convicted in February in what was described as a "modern
day heresy trial".
Michael
Overd and Michael Stockwell were found guilty under the Crime and Disorder Act
1998 at Bristol Magistrates' Court in February this year, with Prosecutor Ian
Jackson claiming that publicly quoting parts of the King James Bible in modern
Britain should "be
considered to be abusive and is a criminal matter".
Mr
Overd and Mr Stockwell had been arrested for preaching at a Bristol shopping
centre in July 2016, along with two other men.
In
February the court had dismissed the case against a third man, Adrian Clark,
ruling that there was no case to answer.
Mr
Overd and Mr Stockwell were both acquitted today at the appeal hearing at
Bristol Crown Court.
Andrea
Williams, Chief Executive of the Christian Legal Centre which is supporting the
two men, described today's ruling as a "victory
for freedom of
speech".
