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A Victorian woman who incurred a $5,000 fine for breaching an abortion censorship zone has lost her Supreme Court appeal.
Kathleen Clubb, mother of 13 children, was convicted after providing information to a couple outside an abortion clinic in East Melbourne in 2016 and received the hefty fine.
As part of her appeal to the Victorian Supreme Court, her lawyers argued it could not be proven that Clubb had “communicated in relation to abortion”.
Supreme Court Justice Maree Kennedy disagreed:
"The appellant has chosen to enter the safe access zone - invading the personal space of an unknown couple - armed with material which related to abortion,” the judge determined.
"There was an approach to a young couple, unknown to the appellant, raising an issue of a highly personal nature as they were making their way into an abortion clinic in circumstances where they were likely to already be feeling distressed or highly vulnerable.
"I consider that there was a substantial chance of causing a significant emotional reaction or psychological response."
FamilyVoice State Director Peter Stevens responded to the judgement.
“The problem is not the judiciary but the government that cares as much for free speech as it does for the rights of the unborn.
“The Andrew’s government continues to erode basic freedoms and must be brought to account.”