President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) hit five pro-life activists with a new lawsuit Thursday for allegedly blocking access to an abortion clinic.
Three activists named in the lawsuit — Calvin Zastrow, Eva Zastrow, and Chester Gallagher — were previously convicted this year on Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act charges in Tennessee. The lawsuit alleges they, along with defendants Kenneth Scott and Katelyn Sims, “trespassed onto a reproductive health center’s property, blocked the entrances, and temporarily stopped operations at the center,” according to the DOJ.
“The Justice Department ensures that individuals cannot pick which laws they wish to follow,” U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg for the Middle District of Florida said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing to protect the rights of patients and providers to access reproductive health care.”
Justice Department Sues Five Individuals for Violation of Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act
: https://t.co/eQ9YnGXKml pic.twitter.com/k7gXg6qquy
— DOJ Civil Rights Division (@CivilRights) June 20, 2024
The defendants created a “temporary halt of operations” on the morning of January 27, 2022, at the Planned Parenthood Fort Myers Health Center in Florida, the lawsuit alleges.
One protester allegedly yelled “baby murderer” and “you’re going to hell” to a doctor at the facility. When deputies from the local sheriff’s office arrived, protestors told them “They are killing babies inside and you are not doing anything about it,” according to the lawsuit.
The DOJ is seeking an injunction, along with “a civil penalty on Defendants of not more than $20,516 for first violations and not more than $30,868 for subsequent violations” and “damages in the amount of $5,000.00 for each person aggrieved.”
For their previous Tennessee conviction, Calvin Zastrow and Gallagher face up to 10 years in prison and $260,000. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 2.
Eva Zastrow faces six months in prison and fines of up to $10,000.
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