The arrest of an anti-abortion activist on federal charges has touched off a firestorm of criticism and accusations of a double standard in the enforcement of protections for reproductive care centers.
agents arrested Mark Houck, founder of a Catholic ministry in Pennsylvania, on Friday for allegedly violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which protects reproductive care facilities of any kind from threats or attacks.
“This case is so weak that — look, the district attorney in Philly, he is very far leftist — and he refused to file criminal charges,” Hans von Spakovsky,senior legal fellow at the Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at the Heritage Foundation, told the“The civil suit that this escort who was shoved [filed] was dismissed,” he added. “That tells you a lot about the lack of evidence.
. “The FBI seems to have deprioritized any investigation with respect to pro-life pregnancy centers.” Harden said his organization handed over surveillance footage of the attack to the local police, which are working with the FBI, months ago and has been unable to view a copy of the footage despite repeated requests to have the material returned.An attorney for the town of Amherstthat fears of politically motivated retaliation from the Right were driving the police department’s concern about releasing the tape.
Von Spakovsky said the FACE Act should be applied equally to both anti-abortion and pro-abortion rights reproductive care centers but that the Justice Department has historically used it only to protect one category of clinics.