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Constitutional Law Keyed to Stone
Planned Parenthood v. American Coalition of Life Activists
Citation:
945 F. Supp. 1355 (D. Or. 1996)Facts
The American Coalition of Life Activists (ACLA) and individual defendants formed an organization that opposed abortion. In January 1995, they released a “Deadly Dozen List” poster containing names, addresses, and phone numbers of thirteen physicians who perform abortions, including three plaintiffs. The poster declared these doctors “Guilty of Crimes Against Humanity” and offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to arrest, conviction, and license revocation. In August 1995, defendants released additional posters targeting specific doctors, including plaintiff Crist. These posters were distributed in a context where previous similar posters had preceded violence against abortion providers, including the murders of Dr. David Gunn, Dr. George Patterson, and Dr. James Barrett. After the Deadly Dozen List was distributed, defendant McMillian publicly stated, “More violence is inevitable, and it is righteous… It wouldn’t bother me if every abortionist in the country today fell dead from a bullet.” The plaintiffs alleged that these posters and statements constituted threats that placed them in reasonable fear of bodily harm.
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