LONDON AP A gay rights activist was convicted Tuesday of ``indecent behavior in a church'' under a seldom-invoked law and fined 18.60 pounds dlrs 30.69 in a token punishment alluding to the year the law was created. Peter Tatchell who heads the British gay rights group Outrage was arrested under the 1860 Ecclesiastical Courts Jurisdiction Act after he staged a three-minute protest beneath the pulpit as the Archbishop of Canterbury Britain's top cleric was about to deliver his Easter Sunday sermon April 12 at Canterbury Cathedral. In front of a congregation of about 1000 people while six of his fellow protesters held up placards under the pulpit he had criticized the archbishop's opposition to lowering the homosexual age of consent and the church's ban on the ordination of gay clergy. His case sparked a high-profile campaign to get the law repealed when free speech activists feared he would face a two month jail sentence the maximum penalty and the sentence handed down when the law was last used in 1966 when anti-war protesters interrupted a church service. But Canterbury Stipendiary Magistrate Michael Kelly instead sentenced Tatchell to the fine saying he considered the offense equivalent to a minor public disorder infraction. During the two-day trial Tatchell had argued that his right to free speech was guaranteed under human rights laws. But the magistrate said the same human rights law also provided for the rights of people to worship. ``You are a man of previous good character and you have a clear commitment to your cause and a belief in non-violent protest'' Kelly said. But he admonished Tatchell nonetheless. ``I am sure that some people will have been disgusted and truly offended by your conduct'' he said. ``I agree with your counsel when he said that the Church of England is a robust institution and I have no doubt that in spite of the publicity here your puerile conduct will soon be forgotten although your cause may not be.'' ``I think your conduct violated the rights of worshippers on one of the most important days in the Christian calendar'' he said. Tatchell said after the trial that he had no regrets ``about standing up for democracy.'' er APW19981201.0982.txt.body.html APW19981201.0583.txt.body.html