Pro-lifers found guilty in Nashville FACE Act trial

After a six-day federal trial held in Nashville, Tennessee, six pro-life defendants were individually found guilty today of one count each of violating the FACE Act and one count of “conspiracy against rights.” Combined, these charges mean that the defendants — Chet Gallagher, Heather Idoni, Cal Zastrow, Coleman Boyd, Paul Vaughn, and Dennis Green — could each spend up to 11 years in prison. Sentencing is set to be held on July 2.

According to a press release from TC Public Relations, “Immediately following the guilty verdict, the pro-life defendants, along with family and friends, gathered in front of the courthouse to pray and sing hymns together.” The release also noted that Thomas More attorneys, who represented defendant Paul Vaughn (referred to as a “Christian father of eleven”), are expected to appeal the ruling to a higher court.

Vaughn’s attorney, Thomas More Senior Counsel Steve Crampton, characterized the pro-life action in March 2021 at the Carafem abortion facility in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, as a “peaceful demonstration” consisting of “prayer, hymn-singing, and worship.” He added that the Biden Administration’s “disturbing” attacks against peaceful pro-lifers in recent years are meant to “intimidate and punish” pro-lifers like Vaughn and his fellow defendants.

The following tweet was posted by March for Life:

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Six pro-life activists were convicted of violating the FACE Act for peacefully protesting outside a Nashville abortion facility. They now face a maximum of 11 years in federal prison. Their crime includes praying, singing, and trying to save children from being aborted.

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6:25 PM · Jan 31, 2024

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As previously reported by Live Action News:

This is the fourth recent high-profile federal trial of pro-lifers charged with conspiracy and FACE Act violations for their peaceful activism at abortion facilities. The first group of five defendants, one of whom (Heather Idoni) is currently being tried again in Nashville, and all of whom were found guilty, faced trial last August. A second trial of three defendants, who were also found guilty, occurred in September. A third trial for a single defendant was held in November – she was also found guilty. Those three trials took place in Washington, D.C., and were all related to a rescue action at Cesare Santangelo’s infamous Washington Surgi-Clinic abortion facility.

An eyewitness reported that on the day of closing arguments, prosecution attorney Kyle Boynton pushed the idea that the conspiracy charge against the defendants was justified due to an allegedly organized plan to obstruct access to the abortion facility, but the defendants’ attorneys argued that communication among the pro-lifers took place to ensure that the gathering was peaceful, orderly, and free of violence — and was not intended to be a protest. Prosecution attorney Amanda Klopf reportedly compared blocking an abortion business to blocking a voting booth, likening access to them both as American rights protected by law.

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Thomas More’s legal team also noted “several key factors that the prosecution relied on to leverage their attack….” These factors were:

• The prosecution relied heavily on a primary witness, Caroline Davis, who participated in and was arrested for the Mt. Juliet prayer event with Vaughn, but later turned state’s evidence.

• The government attempted to paint Paul as willfully deceiving the police during the gathering at the Mt. Juliet prayer event, despite witness testimony from a police negotiator who testified that Paul had been both helpful, collaborative, and peaceful.

• The government also attempted to portray Paul as intending to interfere with the operation of the Mt. Juliet facility using paper-thin evidence, and as a member of a criminal conspiracy despite no evidence of prior knowledge of the event.

• The government also presented an abortion-determined woman who apparently had scheduled an appointment for an abortion but said that she left “because of the protesters.”

• Federal attorneys included an abortion business employee who claimed to be “trapped inside the building during the incident,” despite video that showed traffic clearly passing down the hallway to and from the abortion venue. The general consensus was that any agreement made before the event took place was made in order to ensure that there was no violence and the event happened in as orderly and respectful way as possible.

Caroline Davis also turned state’s evidence against the pro-lifers convicted on FACE Act and conspiracy charges in D.C. Four more defendants will reportedly stand trial at a later date for “misdemeanor violations of the FACE Act.”

Editor’s Note, 1/31/24: This article has been updated to add a social media post.

The DOJ put a pro-life grandmother in jail this Christmas for protesting the killing of preborn children. Please take 30-seconds to TELL CONGRESS: STOP THE DOJ FROM TARGETING PRO-LIFE AMERICANS.