Päivi Räsänen faces a second a year after her acquittal
Finnish Member of Parliament Päivi Räsänen, who was acquitted a year ago after being prosecuted for voicing her traditional Christian beliefs about marriage and sexuality, is still on the defense as she faces a second trial over her biblical beliefs, her lawyers say.
In a statement last week commemorating the first anniversary since her unanimous acquittal by a three-judge panel of the Helsinki District Court, the legal group supporting her defense, ADF International, says Räsänen could still have to pay tens of thousands in fines as prosecutors continue to demand that Räsänen’s views be censored.
Although the court dismissed hate speech charges against Räsänen and Bishop Juhana Pohjola of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland, the prosecutor appealed the not guilty verdict last April.
The former interior minister and religious leader faced prosecution for their roles in creating and publishing a 2004 pamphlet titled Male and Female He Created Them: Homosexual relationships challenge the Christian concept of humanity.
Source: christianpost.com
