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'A Clear Double Standard': House Judiciary Subcommittee Holds Hearing on DOJ Targeting Pro-Life Activists

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Last Wednesday, when Bob Perron saw three decapitated animals in front of this pro-life clinic, his first thought was "I would call it some kind of ritualistic attack."

Perron, who heads the Catholic-run JMJ Pregnancy Center in Orlando, Florida told CBN's Faithwire he was shocked when he saw the remains of the animals in front of the building.

"There was a huge chicken with its head cut off. There was another huge bird with its head cut off, and then a baby lamb that had been decapitated," Perron told Faithwire's Billy Hallowell.

slider img 2The group Catholic Vote says 157 churches and 87 pregnancy resources centers and other pro-life organizations across the country have been attacked since the draft Supreme Court opinion proposing to reverse Roe v Wade was leaked in May of 2022.

"These attacks have included firebombing and vandalism, that includes phrases and graffiti-like, 'If abortions aren't safe, neither are you', including the smashing of windows, targeted online harassment, protesters threatening violence outside pregnancy resource centers, churches, and many other acts," said U.S. Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA).

On Monday, Republicans on the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government held a hearing accusing the Biden administration and the Justice Department of using the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances or FACE Act to unfairly target pro-life activists for prosecution. 

"Let me tell you what that is: That is called selective prosecution in violation of the Constitution. You cannot make prosecutorial decisions because you want to make an example out of somebody who is a well-known, anti-abortion or pro-life activist," said U.S. Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC)

Among those who testified was pro-life activist Mark Houck who was arrested in front of his seven children last fall during a pre-dawn raid of his home by armed FBI agents for allegedly violating the FACE Act. 

A jury found him not guilty of the federal charges earlier this year.

"When {the FBI} show up at your house, 20 agents, guns drawn, in front of your family, why do you think they did it?" asked U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) during Houck's testimony before the subcommittee.

"The intention was to humiliate me, to scare my children, and do sow fear in pro-life America," answered Houck.

The FACE Act, among other things, makes it a crime to cause damage or destruction to a reproductive healthcare facility or place of worship. 

Despite the hundreds of attacks against churches and pro-life facilities since last year's abortion ruling, the Justice Department has brought only four indictments under the FACE Act against pro-abortion activists, compared to the 26 pro-life activists allegedly facing similar violations.

"The Biden administration has shown a clear double standard of enforcing the FACE Act in a way that protests pro-abortion activists and facilities while substantially ignoring attacks on pro-life advocates, facilities, and churches and it is a disgrace that the Justice Department would rather cater to the pro-abortion political movement than protect places that would assist pregnant women in need," Johnson said.

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About The Author

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George
Thomas

Born in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and of Indian descent, CBN News’ Senior International Correspondent and Co-Anchor, George Thomas, has been traveling the globe for more than 20 years, finding the stories of people, conflicts, and issues that must be told. He has reported from more than 100 countries and has had a front-row seat to numerous global events of our day. George’s stories of faith, struggle, and hope combine the expertise of a seasoned journalist with the inspiration of a deep calling to tell the stories of the people behind the news. “I’ve always liked discovering & exploring new