Why Is the Oakland Branch of the ACLU Silent About This Clear Violation of 1st Amendment Rights?
Simple, this involves telling the truth about abortion. Something the ACLU doesn't want to get out. & that shows how much they really are working to undermine the US Constitution not just the 1st Amendment. The ACLU will fight for porn, it will fight for abortion, but free speech, only if you agree with them. I am willing to bet they would be 1st in line to defend someone under the following slight change in the scenerio: John Smith was arrested for passing out flyers supporting abortion within 8 feet of a pregnancy center.
That aside, this story reminds me of what is going on up in Canada with Linda Gibbons that I have blogged about.
The abortion industry knows that it can't win in an honest debate about what abortion really is & does to all involved. So rather than fight fairly, it does all it can to silence the truth. Now more than ever, we can't be silent. Even if it means facing the same fate as Linda Gibbons or Rev. Walter Hoye. We need to be like Peter, John & the other Apostles said when told by the Sanhedren to stop preaching the Gospel. They said: "It is impossible for us not to speak." (Acts 4:20) They knew that what they were doing was what God wanted. & our speaking out about abortion comes under that same heading, proclaiming the Gospel.
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
Oakland, CA (LifeNews.com) -- A California pro-life advocate has been found guilty of violating what pro-life attorneys call an unconstitutional city law that is used specifically to prevent providing information to women outside abortion centers. Oakland officials had enacted the law that appeared to be directed at Walter Hoye, a black pastor.
Hoye says the new law is an unconstitutional infringement on free speech and he was charged under it earlier this year.
At a pre-trial hearing in Oakland Superior Court last month, city officials demanded that Rev. Hoye plead guilty to one misdemeanor count and agree to stay away from local abortion centers for an unspecified period of time in exchange for dismissing three other criminal charges against him.
Hoye refused and now a jury has found him guilty of violating the new law, which prohibits contact within eight feet of women entering abortion businesses without their consent.
Allison Aranda, an attorney with the Life Legal Defense Foundation, which is representing Hoye, tells LifeNews.com that the jury convicted Hoye despite a video tape the defense presented at trial showing that prosecution witnesses conjured up phantom patients whom Hoye had allegedly harassed.
The tape also showed that Hoye had not threatened two abortion facility escorts or its director, as had been alleged.
"This is a miscarriage of justice and we will appeal this verdict," Aranda said.
"After speaking with several jurors after the verdict was read, it is clear that the court's failure and outright refusal to instruct the jury regarding the key elements of the crime led to the erroneous conviction of Rev. Hoye," she added.
Hoye, who is African-American, feels a special calling to work for the end of the high number of abortions taking place in the black community.
As part of his efforts, he stands in front of an abortion business in Oakland with leaflets about abortion alternatives and a sign offering help for women.
LLDF attorneys say the "clinic escorts" are upset by Hoye's presence and they surround him to impede his movement, block his sign with large sheets of blank cardboard, and make raucous noise to drown out his quiet offers of assistance.Because their actions didn't deter Hoye, the Oakland city council approved the new law. The penalty for illegally approaching a person to talk or hand out a leaflet is one year in jail and/or a $2,000 fine.
At the pre-trial hearing, Hoye's LLDF attorneys cross-examined the victims.
The escorts admitted that Hoye never used force against them, threatened them, or blocked them. They proudly testified that they routinely block Hoye to prevent women from seeing his sign.
Related web sites:Life Legal Defense Foundation - http://www.lldf.org/
Hoye says the new law is an unconstitutional infringement on free speech and he was charged under it earlier this year.
At a pre-trial hearing in Oakland Superior Court last month, city officials demanded that Rev. Hoye plead guilty to one misdemeanor count and agree to stay away from local abortion centers for an unspecified period of time in exchange for dismissing three other criminal charges against him.
Hoye refused and now a jury has found him guilty of violating the new law, which prohibits contact within eight feet of women entering abortion businesses without their consent.
Allison Aranda, an attorney with the Life Legal Defense Foundation, which is representing Hoye, tells LifeNews.com that the jury convicted Hoye despite a video tape the defense presented at trial showing that prosecution witnesses conjured up phantom patients whom Hoye had allegedly harassed.
The tape also showed that Hoye had not threatened two abortion facility escorts or its director, as had been alleged.
"This is a miscarriage of justice and we will appeal this verdict," Aranda said.
"After speaking with several jurors after the verdict was read, it is clear that the court's failure and outright refusal to instruct the jury regarding the key elements of the crime led to the erroneous conviction of Rev. Hoye," she added.
Hoye, who is African-American, feels a special calling to work for the end of the high number of abortions taking place in the black community.
As part of his efforts, he stands in front of an abortion business in Oakland with leaflets about abortion alternatives and a sign offering help for women.
LLDF attorneys say the "clinic escorts" are upset by Hoye's presence and they surround him to impede his movement, block his sign with large sheets of blank cardboard, and make raucous noise to drown out his quiet offers of assistance.Because their actions didn't deter Hoye, the Oakland city council approved the new law. The penalty for illegally approaching a person to talk or hand out a leaflet is one year in jail and/or a $2,000 fine.
At the pre-trial hearing, Hoye's LLDF attorneys cross-examined the victims.
The escorts admitted that Hoye never used force against them, threatened them, or blocked them. They proudly testified that they routinely block Hoye to prevent women from seeing his sign.
Related web sites:Life Legal Defense Foundation - http://www.lldf.org/
Labels: Linda Gibbons, Pastor Walter Hoye
posted by Al @ 5:24 AM
2 Comments:
At 19/1/09 9:09 AM ,
Joe said...
The ACLU is not a legitimate civil liberties organization. It is a criminal abortionist pressure group which helps aid and abet crimes against unborn children.
It is obscene that politicians would pass a statute allowing a year in jail for no crime at all, not even civil disobedience. Even if handing out leaflets were considered a "crime", it should carry a fine of $50 or so. A year in jail is vicious and obscene.
The draconian penalties that the criminal abortion industry and criminal abortionist politicians want to inflict on peaceful pro-life activists show how morally bankrupt these people are.
The Rev. Hoye is committing no crime, not even trespass. The criminal abortionists and their puppet politicians are all committing or aiding and abetting violent and lethal crimes against human beings.
It is pathetic and tragic that the criminals are able to prosecute those who are trying to stop these terrible crimes.
At 20/1/09 2:46 AM ,
Al said...
Joe,
I get the feeling you aren't a big fan of the ACLU. I can't blame you. As I said, they present themselves as defending the Constitution whuile actually undermining it.
That laws like this get passed shows 2 things:
1) How much these politicians are owned by the abortion industry.
2) How much money the abortion industry makes enabling it to afford to buy them.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home