Police admit detention of grandmother for praying was wrong

Grandmother Rosa Lalor, 76, of Liverpool, has successfully challenged a penalty given to her while out walking and silently praying near an abortion facility during the lockdown in February 2021. The officer at that time said that Rosa wasn’t praying in a place of worship, and that she did not have a “reasonable excuse” to be outdoors at that time. The officer also claimed that Rosa was there to “protest” and she was arrested, detained, and issued with a fine.
Merseyside Police have now conceded that her detention was wrong and that Rosa was acting within her rights – and that she also had a “reasonable excuse” to be outdoors praying. It has accepted that Rosa was acting well within her rights to pray while she was walking in a public space, and her actions were reasonable and should not have been curtailed under coronavirus regulations.





