Trump Administration pardons anti-abortion criminals, downplays importance of prosecuting them

The FACE Act, a federal law that protects abortion workers and women from harassment and violence, won’t be a point of emphasis for the next four years.

Immediately upon assuming office, President Donald Trump pardoned 23 people who had violated the Freedom to Access Clinic Entrances Act, which prevents the blockading of abortion clinics.

It’s part of a movement within the Trump administration and Justice Department to downplay the significance of the law that was passed during the Clinton Administration to deter violence and harassment of women and abortion workers. The Associated Press reported that they will only prosecute people who violate the law in “extraordinary circumstances.”

Many of those pardoned are currently serving prison sentences for physically blocking patients from accessing their doctors. Some of the offenses committed include breaking into clinics, stealing fetal tissue, and accosting pregnant patients. Six of the people pardoned had blocked patients from entering a Michigan healthcare clinic that the Center for Reproductive Rights represents, according to the Center for Reproductive Rights.

There won’t be an emphasis on enforcing the law in the future, either. Attorney General Chief of Staff Chad Mizelle ordered the immediate dismissal of three FACE Act cases related to the 2021 blockades of clinics in Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and Ohio.

Nancy Northup, President & CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, described the pardons as a “get out of jail free card.”

“Since the news of the pardons, we have heard from abortion providers across the country that they are terrified for the safety of their staff and patients,” Northup said. “Even with this law in place, anti-abortion activists have threatened to kill providers, have bombed their clinics, and have harassed their patients.

“Under previous administrations, clinics could count on the Department of Justice to enforce the law regardless of a president’s views on abortion. No more. President Trump has declared that it is him, not Congress, who decides what the law is and who it protects.”