Joe Biden’s DOJ/FBI is hunting down pro-life, conservative grandmas while ignoring Antifa and BLM militants.
Four pro-life Christians were convicted of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act following a peaceful protest at a Tennessee abortion facility.
The individuals, Eva Edl, Eva Zastrow, James Zastrow, and Paul Place, now face potential penalties of a year in prison and thousands of dollars in fines, with sentencing scheduled for July 30.
The convictions were the result of a one-day bench trial overseen by Middle District of Tennessee Magistrate Judge Chip Frensly, according to The Daily Caller.
Judge Frensly sided with the Justice Department, affirming that the defendants had indeed breached the law. The verdict was reached after less than thirty minutes of deliberation.
Following the court’s decision, the convicted, along with their families, gathered outside the courthouse to engage in singing and prayer, signaling their continued solidarity and faith despite the legal setback.
Christian pro-lifers sing hymns after conviction on FACE Act charges in Nashville pic.twitter.com/WduAxXZKsF
— Leif Le Mahieu (@leif_lemahieu) April 3, 2024
Defense lawyers criticized the prosecution as an excessive use of federal power, particularly pointing to the Biden regime’s aggressive stance against individuals expressing their beliefs in a non-violent manner.
They argued that their clients were simply engaging in prayer and worship in hopes of dissuading women from terminating their pregnancies.
The charges stemmed from an incident on March 5, 2021, when the defendants participated in a pro-life demonstration at the Carafem abortion facility in Mt Juliet, Tennessee.
The group, which included the four convicted, had gathered in the office building’s second-floor hallway outside Carafem, engaging in prayer, hymn singing, and attempting to dissuade women from proceeding with abortions.
WATCH:
In October 2022, eleven pro-life advocates were arrested.
“Chester Gallagher, Heather Idoni, Calvin Zastrow, Coleman Boyd, Caroline Davis, Paul Vaughn, Dennis Green, Eva Edl, Eva Zastrow, James Zastrow and Paul Place were indicted for federal offenses in connection with an alleged reproductive health care clinic blockade in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, on March 5, 2021. Gallagher, Idoni, Calvin Zastrow, Boyd, Davis, Vaughn and Dennis Green were charged with a civil rights conspiracy. All 11 defendants were charged with a Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act) offense,” the DOJ wrote in 2022.
Among them was Paul Vaughn, whose arrest at his home by FBI agents has been criticized for its use of force.
Retired FBI agent Steve Gray decried the FBI’s actions as excessive compared to his own experience with arrests involving gang and organized crime, where less force was used.
Screen images from a cellphone video taken by his wife show FBI agents at the front door of the home of Paul Vaughn, 55, after they arrested him at gunpoint in front of his family before they walked off, refusing to answer questions while one agent comes around from behind the house.
Last month, in a separate case, U.S. Federal Judge Joe Anderson found Steven Lefemine guilty of FACE Act violations during a non-jury trial. Lefemine’s peaceful protest involved singing hymns and reciting Bible verses outside a South Carolina clinic.
Shortly after Lefemine’s protest began, the staff of the abortion clinic, along with the police officers, asked Lefemine to stop blocking the entrance of the abortion clinic, to which Lefemine replied he would only leave if “They agree not to kill babies today.”
At his trial, Lefemine represented himself and cited the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and Bible passages from Psalms, Exodus, Matthew, and Acts.
According to the DOJ, Lefemine now faces a maximum penalty of six months in federal prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
Also last year, a DC jury on Friday convicted three defendants, two over 70, for blocking the entrance to an abortion clinic.
The defendants each face a maximum of 11 years in prison, three years supervised release, and a fine of up to $350,000.
The three defendants – Jonathan Darnel, 41, of Arlington, Virginia.; Jean Marshall, 73, of Kingston, Massachusetts; Joan Bell, 74, of Montague, New Jersey – were each convicted of a felony conspiracy against rights and a FACE Act offense, the DOJ announced
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