Life Legal is suing the state of California over a new law that restricts pro-life activity outside abortion clinics and online.
The law, AB 1356, criminalizes electronically recording abortion workers and/or within 100 feet of the entrance of an abortion clinic for the purpose of intimidating them from going into the clinic. AB 1356 law is discriminatory in that it specifically targets pro-life activity while exempting members of the media.
Life Legal is representing pro-lifers who regularly provide counseling and education to women outside abortion clinics to discourage them from aborting their babies. During the course of this engagement, pro-lifers have been harassed and even assaulted by clinic deathscorts and other pro-aborts. We have long encouraged pro-lifers to record these incidents for legal purposes and to prevent further harm.
The plaintiffs in our lawsuit and many other pro-lifers are afraid to continue recording outside abortion clinics because they do not want to run afoul of AB 1356, which carries heavy criminal penalties, including one year in county jail and a fine up to $10,000.
The law makes it more difficult for pro-lifers to document what happens outside abortion clinics and let the public know about the aggressive and sometimes violent behavior of pro-aborts. Moreover, AB 1356 makes it riskier for pro-lifers to gather evidence of altercations in order to defend themselves against false accusations.
We are seeking to have the law enjoined as an unconstitutional violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments, before it comes into effect on January 1.
Thank you for standing with us as we fight back against laws that target pro-lifers.