Eleven pro-life activists have been arrested for allegedly violating federal law by blocking the entrance to an abortion facility in Tennessee.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the federal indictment charged the 11 activists with violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.
The Christian Post reports that the 11 people included Eva Zastro, 24, of Dover, Arkansas; Heather Idoni, 58, Calvin Zastrow, 57; and Caroline Davis, 24; all from Michigan; Coleman Boyd, 51, of Bolton, Mississippi; James Zastro, 25, of Eldon Missouri; Eva Edl, 87, of Aiken, South Carolina; Chester Gallagher, 73, of Lebanon, Tennessee; Paul Vaughn, 55, and Paul Place, 24, both of Centerville, Tennessee; and Dennis Green, 56, of Cumberland, Virginia.
"The indictment alleges that, beginning in February 2021, Chester Gallagher utilized social media to promote a series of anti-abortion events scheduled for March 4-7, 2021, in the Nashville area," the statement from the DOJ reads.
"On March 4, 2021, Coleman Boyd and Chester [Gallagher] advertised the blockade of the Carafem Health Center Clinic in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, which was planned for the following day."
The activists then "blocked the clinic's entry doors and prevented a patient and an employee from entering," allegedly using "force and physical obstruction to injure, intimidate, and interfere with employees of the clinic and a patient seeking reproductive health services."
Of the 11, seven are also facing conspiracy charges. Those charges carry a maximum penalty of 11 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000. The others are being charged with misdemeanors, which could result in up to one year in prison and a $10,000 fine.
In a statement released last week, Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the national pro-life grassroots advocacy organization Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, called the 11 indictments the latest example of "the Biden administration's egregious abuse of the Justice Department."
"Pro-abortion Democrats will stop at nothing to protect the abortion industry that spends millions to elect them, while demonizing pro-life advocates working to save lives and turning a blind eye to violence against them," Dannenfelser said.
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Stevanovicigor
Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.
