2020 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20006
202-546-0054
ChristianNewswire.com
One Penn Plaza, Suite 6202
New York, NY 10119
212-290-1585
StandardNewswire.com
One Penn Plaza, Suite 6202
New York, NY 10119
212-290-1585
CatholicWireService.com
Religion Newswire
2020 Penn. Ave., NW, Suite CCN
Washington, DC 20006
202-546-0054
2020 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20006 U.S.A.
Thomas More Society Successfully Blocks Preliminary Injunction Request
Contact: Tom Ciesielka, 312-422-1333, tc@tcpr.net
DENVER, Jan. 27, 2012 /Christian
Newswire/ -- Yesterday, Thomas More Society attorneys defeated a request by
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder for a preliminary injunction against longtime
Denver area pro-life activist Ken Scott. After a full-day hearing, U.S. District
Judge Philip A. Brimmer ruled that the Attorney General would not be reasonably
likely to prove at trial that Scott physically obstructed employees of the
Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains abortion facility in Denver. The
Attorney General has asserted ten separate violations of the Freedom of Access
to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act against Scott, seeking a $10,000 fine against him
and an injunction to keep him 25 feet away from the facility. A copy of Judge
Brimmer's ruling is
available here.
"This is the latest in a series of meritless, harassing lawsuits filed by the
Obama Administration that seek to squelch peaceful pro-life advocacy on public
sidewalks outside abortion providers," said Peter Breen, executive director and
legal counsel for the Thomas More Society. "In this case, the Attorney General
presented no evidence that Mr. Scott injured, intimidated, or did anything other
than speak to folks who willingly decided to stop their cars to talk with him.
Assigning five taxpayer-funded prosecutors from Washington, D.C. to attack one
peaceful man exercising his free speech rights is a colossal waste of money,
uncalled for at any time, much less at a time of record government deficits, not
to mention the Government's gross insult to the First Amendment."
Ken Scott is a "sidewalk counselor" who offers pro-life literature, advice about
nearby pregnancy resource centers, and other pro-life counseling and advocacy to
individuals patronizing the Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains abortion
facility in Denver. United States v. Scott is one of many recent FACE Act
lawsuits brought by the Obama Administration and its Attorney General, Eric
Holder, against local sidewalk counselors. The Attorney General's primary legal
theory is that a car that stops to speak to a sidewalk counselor constitutes a
"physical obstruction" of access to an abortion facility and a violation of the
FACE Act, punishable by a $10,000 fine and an injunction against sidewalk
counseling at a particular facility.
Judge Brimmer's ruling held that the brief delays experienced by cars
waiting for others to finish their conversations with Ken Scott were not the
kinds of "unreasonable delays" contemplated by the FACE Act. Judge Brimmer also
held that the balance of the equities weighed in favor of Ken Scott.
Representing Ken Scott in the United States District Court were Peter Breen of
the Chicago-based Thomas More Society, a national public interest law firm, and
Rebecca Messall and Monica Flanigan of Denver's Hackstaff Law Group, LLC. Ms. Messall,
in addition to conducting her private law practice, has been CEO of the National
Lawyers Association, a pro-life legal group, for the past two years and also
served as board chair for Denver Catholic Charities.
Videos of Ken Scott at the abortion facility can be seen at these three links:
youtu.be/_51mp_bZ2ho
youtu.be/MfnsNavdNek
youtu.be/UUOg-Pa-V3M
About the Thomas More Society
Founded in 1997, the Thomas More Society is a national public interest law firm
that exists to restore respect for life in law. Based in Chicago, the Thomas
More Society defends the sanctity of human life, the family and religious
liberty in courtrooms across the country. The Society is a nonprofit
organization wholly supported by private donations. For more information or to
support the work of the Thomas More Society, please visit
www.thomasmoresociety.org.