Offences relating to safe access zones
4Offence of influencing, preventing access or causing harassment etc. in safe access zone
(1)
A person who is in a safe access zone for protected premises commits an offence if the person does an act with the intention of, or is reckless as to whether the act has the effect of—
(a)
influencing the decision of another person to access, provide or facilitate the provision of abortion services at the protected premises,
(b)
preventing or impeding another person from accessing, providing or facilitating the provision of abortion services at the protected premises, or
(c)
causing harassment, alarm or distress to another person in connection with the other person’s decision to access, provide or facilitate the provision of abortion services at the protected premises,
where in each case the other person is in the safe access zone for the purpose of accessing, providing or facilitating the provision of abortion services at the protected premises.
(2)
Where a person does an act in a safe access zone constituting an offence under subsection (1) and the act has a continuing effect, it does not matter for the purpose of that subsection whether the other person referred to in the subsection is in the safe access zone at the time the person does the act.
(3)
A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable—
(a)
on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum,
(b)
on conviction on indictment, to a fine.