Just days after pardoning 23 anti-abortion protesters, the Trump administration has instructed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to limit enforcement of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act. Chad Mizelle, chief of staff to the US Attorney General, stated that federal prosecutors are now directed to take action only in “extraordinary circumstances, or in cases presenting significant aggravating factors, such as death, serious bodily harm, or serious property damage.”
The FACE Act, signed into law in 1994, makes it illegal for a person to interfere, harm, or threaten anyone “obtaining or providing reproductive health services” or “damage a facility because such facility provides reproductive health care.” The law has been actively enforced during the Biden administration, with the Justice Department pursuing at least 25 cases against approximately 60 defendants as of June 2024. These cases involved violence and threats against both abortion providers and pregnancy resource centers.
Incidents from recent years showcase the persistent threats facing reproductive health clinics: a California defendant repeatedly shot BB guns at a Planned Parenthood clinic, while another firebombed a facility with a Molotov cocktail. In Florida, three individuals were charged with vandalizing multiple pregnancy resource centers with threatening messages.
The policy shift coincided with the March for Life rally in Washington, D.C. Speaking at the gathering, Vice President J.D. Vance declared, “No longer will our government throw pro-life protesters and activists, elderly grandparents or anybody else in prison.” His celebration of the policy change sparked immediate backlash.
The decision has drawn sharp criticism from reproductive rights advocates who fear the policy shift sends a dangerous message. Krista Noah, an official at Planned Parenthood Federation of America, argued that Trump’s actions have “greenlit violence against abortion providers, all at the expense of people who wish to live in peace and safely exercise the reproductive freedom they deserve.”
With federal enforcement of the FACE Act curtailed, the burden will now largely fall to state and local authorities, raising concerns regarding inconsistent protections nationwide. Advocates warn that this patchwork enforcement could leave clinics, staff, and patients vulnerable, especially in areas with limited local resources.
SOURCES
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-face-act-abortion-related-actions-justice-department/