WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� President Donald Trump's new Justice Department leadership issued an order Friday to curtail prosecutions against people accused of blocking reproductive rights facilities, calling the cases an example of the 鈥渨eaponization鈥� of law enforcement.
Justice Department chief of staff Chad Mizelle said in a memo obtained by The Associated Press that prosecutions and civil actions under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act or 鈥淔ACE Act鈥� will now be permitted only in 鈥渆xtraordinary circumstances鈥� or in cases presenting 鈥漵ignificant aggravating factors."
Mizelle also ordered the immediate dismissal of three FACE Act cases related to 2021 blockades of clinics in , and . One man was accused of obtaining "illegal access to a secure patient space at a Planned Parenthood facility in Philadelphia without staff permission or knowledge鈥� and barricading himself in a restroom, according to court papers.
The news comes after Trump pardoned several anti-abortion activists convicted of blockading abortion clinic entrances in violation of the FACE Act, which is designed to protect abortion clinics from obstruction and threats.
Alanna Durkin Richer And Christine Fernando, The Associated Press
