Court halts NY attorney general from violating pregnancy centers' freedom of speech

BUFFALO, N.Y. – A federal district court ruled Thursday that two nonprofit pro-life pregnancy centers and a nonprofit network of affiliated centers in New York are free to tell women about the life-saving potential of using progesterone for abortion pill reversal while their lawsuit continues.

In National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. James, Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys represent the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates, Gianna’s House, and Options Care Center. The pro-life pregnancy centers sued New York Attorney General Letitia James for abusing her authority by censoring the pregnancy centers because they tell women about the potential of using progesterone for abortion pill reversal. Progesterone is a safe and naturally occurring hormone that can often be successfully used to counteract the life-ending effects of abortion drugs when taken in time. The district court found the pregnancy centers are likely to succeed on the merits of their free speech claim, halting state officials from violating the centers’ freedom of speech while their case proceeds.

“Women in New York have literally saved their babies from an in-progress chemical drug abortion because they had access to information through their local pregnancy centers about using safe and effective progesterone for abortion pill reversal. But the attorney general tried to deny women the opportunity to even hear about this life-saving option,” said ADF Senior Counsel Caleb Dalton, who argued before the court last week. “Many women regret their abortions, and some seek to stop the effects of abortion drugs before taking the second drug in the abortion drug process. Taking supplemental progesterone may give them a chance to save their baby’s life. Women should have the option to reconsider an abortion, and the pro-life pregnancy centers we represent in this case truthfully inform them about that choice. The court was right to affirm the pregnancy centers’ freedom to tell interested women about this life-saving treatment option.”

“The First Amendment protects Plaintiffs’ right to speak freely about [abortion pill reversal] protocol and, more specifically, to say that it is safe and effective for a pregnant woman to use in consultation with her doctor,” the court wrote in its ruling. “Indeed, the ‘very purpose of the First Amendment is to foreclose public authority from assuming a guardianship of the public mind through regulating the press, speech, and religion.’ To ‘this end, the government, even with the purest of motives, may not substitute its judgment as to how best to speak for that of speakers and listeners; free and robust debate cannot thrive if directed by the government.’ And this is particularly true ‘in the fields of medicine and public health, where information can save lives.’”

James recently sued 11 faith-based pro-life pregnancy centers in the state, alleging—despite evidence to the contrary—that the centers are spreading “false and misleading” information about progesterone treatment. As ADF attorneys explain, she is unlawfully targeting pro-life pregnancy centers—threatening punishment for publishing information that gives women the option of changing their minds regarding their pregnancies.

Multiple studies support the information the centers wish to provide women. The body uses progesterone naturally to sustain pregnancy, and medical professionals have used it for decades to prevent miscarriage and forestall preterm labor safely and effectively. Statistics show that abortion pill reversal has likely saved over 5,000 unborn lives and has up to a 64-68% success rate. Yet the attorney general has targeted centers that tell women about this option because of the centers’ pro-life viewpoints and the content of their speech. ADF attorneys explained in the lawsuit that such actions from a government official violated the centers’ First Amendment right to speak freely and practice their religious beliefs. Today, the court agreed.

Under the court’s order, NIFLA, Gianna’s House, and Options Care Center will now be able to inform women who have taken the first abortion drug that the possibility exists to counteract the drug’s lethal effects, and the attorney general is prohibited from censoring them for providing that information.

Michael G. McCartin and Denis Kitchen, two of more than 4,800 attorneys in the ADF Attorney Network, are serving as local counsel on behalf of the pregnancy centers.

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.

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