A Texas man pleaded guilty on Wednesday to vandalizing pregnancy centers in May of 2022 in response to the leaked Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.
Ethan Skorick, 23, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a press release. On May 7, 2022, Skorick intentionally damaged the properties of Loreto House and Woman to Woman pro-life pregnancy resource centers located in Denton, Texas. He vandalized the buildings with words including “NOT A CLINIC,” “FORCED BIRTH IS MURDER,” and “PRO BIRTH [does not equal] PRO LIFE,” and defaced the clinics security cameras with spray paint, according to court documents.
Skorick said he vandalized the pro-life pregnancy centers because “both facilities provide reproductive health services that I opposed,” the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported, citing his statements from court documents.
“I was angered by the United States Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which previously provided Constitutional protections for abortion services,” he said, according to court documents.
Crisis pregnancy centers notably offer support to pregnant women in need who choose life for their unborn children, including providing free pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, medical exams, parenting classes, items like food, diapers, clothing, and financial assistance for housing. Many pro-life pregnancy centers also help women after their babies are born.
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“This defendant sought to prevent fellow citizens from exercising rights protected by law,” said U.S. Attorney Damien M. Diggs for the Eastern District of Texas. “People cannot resort to destroying property in an effort to intimidate or prevent others from engaging in lawful activity simply because they disagree with the law. This office will remain dedicated to protecting the rights of all Americans to safely access medical services and ensuring providers can perform their duties freely
Skorick faces up to one year in prison and up to $100,000 in fines, according to court documents cited by the Star-Telegram.
The FACE Act was signed into law in 1994 by then-President Bill Clinton and prohibits “violent, threatening, damaging, and obstructive conduct intended to injure, intimidate, or interfere with the right to seek, obtain, or provide reproductive health services.”
The FACE Act has been a flashpoint in the abortion debate during the Biden administration, with the DOJ using the law to almost explicitly go after pro-life advocates who peacefully protest at abortion clinics. While the law was written to equally protect abortion clinics, pro-life pregnancy resource centers, and churches, 97 percent of FACE Act cases since the law’s inception have been against pro-life advocates.
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Data obtained by Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) shows that in less than four years, Biden’s DOJ has accounted for more than a quarter of all 211 FACE prosecutions. At least 55 FACE Act cases have been prosecuted during the Biden administration, and only a handful of those have been against pro-abortion activists, despite an increase in attacks against pro-life pregnancy centers and churches following the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision overturning Roe.
Some Republicans have called the FACE Act unconstitutional and have proposed doing away with the law altogether in response to the Biden administration’s apparent weaponization of it. Democrats reject that assessment, countering that the federal law is needed — on top of state laws — to dissuade protesters from engaging in violent behavior.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.
