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Watch: Here’s the Shoving Incident Biden’s DOJ Tried to Use to Imprison Pro-Life Activist Mark Houck for 11 Years

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President Joe Biden’s pro-abortion Department of Justice (DOJ) tried — and failed —  to imprison pro-life activist and Catholic father of seven Mark Houck for 11 years over a shoving incident that occurred in October of 2021.

Houck, 48, testified in district court that he pushed Planned Parenthood escort, 73-year-old Bruce Love, because Love was verbally harassing his 12-year-old son as he was sidewalk counseling outside a Philadelphia abortion clinic. Video of the incident obtained by Breitbart News shows Love going out of his way to approach Houck and his son, although Love has denied verbally provoking Houck.

More than a year after the incident, the DOJ decided to press charges against Houck, despite the fact that even local authorities declined to press charges. On September 23, 2022, the DOJ sent a team of Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents to his home and allegedly arrested him at gunpoint in front of his wife and children.

The DOJ accused Houck of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act), a 1993 law created to prosecute crimes at pro-life pregnancy centers that has “been used almost exclusively against pro-life activists,” Catholic News Agency’s (CNA) Joe Bukuras detailed. The FACE Act outlaws “violent, threatening, damaging, and obstructive conduct intended to injure, intimidate, or interfere with the right to seek, obtain, or provide reproductive health services.”

Jury deliberations began Friday but were “deadlocked” by the evening. The jury resumed deliberations Monday, and an alternate juror subsequently took the place of one of the original jurors by 1:30 p.m. The jury then found Houck not guilty on both counts. Houck was charged with two counts of violating the FACE Act and faced 11 years in federal prison if he had been found guilty.

According to Bukuras, supporters of Houck “cried and hugged one another” after the verdict was read in the U.S. District Court in Philadelphia. 

Bukuras noted that even “U.S. District Judge Gerald Pappert himself raised the possibility that the case should never have been brought to trial, asking the prosecution Thursday whether the federal FACE Act didn’t ‘seem to be stretched a little thin here.’”

Houck’s arrest came after the DOJ established a “Reproductive Rights Task Force” to “protect access to reproductive health care” in anticipation of the overturn of Roe v. Wade.

The DOJ went after 26 pro-life individuals in 2022 with alleged violations of the FACE Act, even though FBI Director Christopher Wray admitted in November that approximately 70 percent of abortion-related threats of violence in the United States since the Dobbs decision have been against pro-life groups. Out of more than 100 attacks of churches and pro-life pregnancy resource centers, the DOJ finally indicted two pro-abortion activists out of Florida accused of vandalism and FACE Act violations last week.

Peter Breen, Thomas More Society Executive Vice President and Head of Litigation, celebrated the victory and condemned the Biden administration’s “intimidation against pro-life people.”

“We are, of course, thrilled with the outcome. Mark and his family are now free of the cloud that the Biden administration threw upon them. We took on Goliath — the full might of the United States government — and won,” Breen said. “The jury saw through and rejected the prosecution’s discriminatory case, which was harassment from day one. This is a win for Mark and the entire pro-life movement. The Biden Department of Justice’s intimidation against pro-life people and people of faith has been put in its place.”

Pro-Life Activist Mark Houck Found Not Guilty of Violating FACE Act

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Pro-life activist and Catholic father of seven Mark Houck was found not guilty on Monday on federal assault charges brought by President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ), Catholic News Agency reported.

The DOJ decided to press charges against Houck, 48, who pushed a Planned Parenthood escort twice on October 13, 2021 — even though local authorities declined to press charges. Houck said he pushed the escort, 73-year-old Bruce Love, because he was verbally harassing his 12-year-old son as he was sidewalk counseling outside the abortion clinic. 

The DOJ sent a team of Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents to his home of September 23, 2022, allegedly arresting him at gunpoint in front of his wife and children. The DOJ accused Houck of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act), a 1993 law created to prosecute crimes at pro-life pregnancy centers that has “been used almost exclusively against pro-life activists,” CNA’s Joe Bukuras detailed.  The FACE Act outlaws “violent, threatening, damaging, and obstructive conduct intended to injure, intimidate, or interfere with the right to seek, obtain, or provide reproductive health services.”

Houck was charged with two counts of violating the FACE Act and faced 11 years in federal prison if he had been found guilty. According to Bukuras, supporters of Houck “cried and hugged one another” after the verdict was read in the U.S. District Court in Philadelphia.

“U.S. District Judge Gerald Pappert himself raised the possibility that the case should never have been brought to trial, asking the prosecution Thursday whether the federal FACE Act didn’t ‘seem to be stretched a little thin here,’” the report continues. 

Attorney General Merrick Garland listens listens as President Joe Biden speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Friday, May 13, 2022, during an event to highlight state and local leaders who are investing American Rescue Plan funding. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Attorney General Merrick Garland listens as President Joe Biden speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Friday, May 13, 2022. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Houck was sidewalk counseling outside the clinic at the time of the incident in connection with his work for The King’s Men, a group dedicated to helping men become better husbands, fathers, and leaders. The three-day trial revolved around if Houck pushed Love because Love was providing reproductive health services, which would be in violation of the FACE Act. Love denied verbally provoking Houck, the report states.

Jury deliberations began on Friday but were “deadlocked” by the evening. The jury resumed deliberations on Monday, and an alternate juror subsequently took the place of one of the original jurors by 1:30 p.m. The jury then found Houck not guilty on both counts.

Houck’s arrest notably came after the DOJ established a “Reproductive Rights Task Force” to “protect access to reproductive health care” in anticipation for the end of Roe v. Wade. In 2022, the DOJ went after 26 pro-life individuals in 2022 with alleged violations of the FACE Act, even though FBI Director Christopher Wray admitted in November 2022 that approximately 70 percent of abortion-related threats of violence in the United States since the Dobbs decision have been against pro-life groups. Out of more than 100 attacks of churches and pro-life pregnancy resource centers, the DOJ finally indicted two pro-abortion activists out of Florida accused of vandalism and FACE Act violations last week.

Peter Breen, Thomas More Society Executive Vice President and Head of Litigation celebrated the victory and condemned the Biden administration’s “intimidation against pro-life people.”

“We are, of course, thrilled with the outcome. Mark and his family are now free of the cloud that the Biden administration threw upon them. We took on Goliath — the full might of the United States government — and won,” Breen said. “The jury saw through and rejected the prosecution’s discriminatory case, which was harassment from day one. This is a win for Mark and the entire pro-life movement. The Biden Department of Justice’s intimidation against pro-life people and people of faith has been put in its place.”

40 Days for Life’s General Counsel Matt Britton said the case is “not just a win for the pro-life movement and Mark, but for free speech and every single American.” 

“The federal government trumped up charges months after a local case had been dismissed. If the feds had prevailed, every argument in front of every abortion facility, no matter the subject, could result in federal charges,” Britton said. “The feds tried to make a point that they would not tolerate pro-life speech and tried to make Mark an example that they would charge and intimidate pro-lifers, all while claiming that they represent democracy and free speech. But not today. The system worked, and justice prevailed.” 

The case is The United States of America v. Houck, No. 2:22-cv-323 in the United State District Court Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 

Watch: Pro-Abortion Activists Scream Their Heads Off at Pro-Lifers During 2023 Women’s March

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Pro-abortion activists screamed in the faces of pro-lifers at the 2023 Women’s March in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, insisting that unborn babies “are not people.”

“You care about controlling women. I’m not scared of you,” one Women’s March attendee screamed in the face of AJ Hurley, who is activism lead for the pro-life group Live Action. Breitbart News’s Matthew Perdie caught the incident on camera. 

“You should not be surprised that when you advocate for violence, you use violence,” Hurley said, before being met with more screams. 

“You’re supporting murder,” he continued. “Your demons are manifesting.” 

WATCH THE LIVESTREAM: 

Another pro-abortion activist was caught on camera saying that unborn babies “are not people” 

“They are not people. They’re a clump of cells. They don’t exist,” she said. 

Breitbart News’s Matthew Perdie also captured other pro-abortion activists woofing like dogs when Hurley pointed out that none of them had been aborted.

Matt Perdie / Breitbart News

“You weren’t aborted, you weren’t aborted, and you were not aborted,” Hurley said, pointing to several of the pro-abortion activists who were surrounding him. The pro-abortion activists, rather than engage in Hurley’s argument, began screaming and barking. 

Hurley said his remarks were in reference to former President Ronald Reagan’s quote: “I’ve noticed that everyone who is for abortion has already been born.”

“I was thinking about that and figured I would remind everyone that if my voice didn’t matter because I’m a man, their voice doesn’t matter because they weren’t aborted,” he told Breitbart News on Tuesday. 

The Women’s March has been happening since 2017, when angry feminists poured into the streets across the United States on the first full day of Donald Trump’s presidency. Hundreds of thousands of people reportedly attended the protest in Washington, DC, though Hurley said the Women’s March turnout in the nation’s capital this year was a shred of what it has been.

“Yeah, Women’s March was unbelievably small. There were a total of maybe 500 people there,” he estimated. “We can get these kind of numbers on a few days’ notice.”

Hurley said the smaller turnout shows that “the tide is shifting.” 

“People know what’s in the womb is human life. They can see with their own eyes the victims of their ideology. Abortion is murder, and we’re not going back,” he said. 

Pro-Life Groups Protest Walgreens, CVS over Plans to Dispense Abortion Pills

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Pro-life groups have begun protesting Walgreens and CVS after the companies announced plans to dispense abortion pills following a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory change.

Roughly 100 pro-life activists led by Live Action protested outside of a Walgreens shareholders meeting on Thursday in Newport Coast, California. Live Action founder and president, Lila Rose, said Walgreens is “on track to becoming on of the biggest abortionists in the nation.”

“They are no longer a healthcare company but an abortion company. It is disgusting and repulsive to the American people that a pharmacist preparing allergy medication and blood pressure pills will now also be packaging and handing out deadly poison intended to kill children,” Rose said in a statement. “Walgreens—and other companies choosing to make a quick buck by pedaling the deadly abortion pill—can never be taken seriously as a healthcare company again. Mothers and children will not be safe until these drugs are taken off the market.”

Live Action protests pharmacies selling abortion pills (Photo courtesy of Live Action).

Live Action protests pharmacies selling abortion pills (Photo courtesy of Live Action).

Live Action protests pharmacies selling abortion pills (Photo courtesy of Live Action).

Live Action protests pharmacies selling abortion pills (Photo courtesy of Live Action).

In early January, the FDA made a regulatory change allowing retail pharmacies to offer Mifepristone — the first pill used in a two-drug medication abortion regimen — in-store and by mail order, though patients will still need a prescription from a certified healthcare provider.

At the same time, the FDA officially removed the in-person requirement from its regulatory rule book for Mifepristone, meaning women will continue to be able to obtain a prescription for the abortion pill via telemedicine. The FDA made the move the same day President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) cleared the U.S. Postal Service to deliver abortion drugs to states with abortion restrictions and bans, offering “limited assurances that a federal law addressing the issue won’t be used to prosecute people criminally over such mailings,” according to Politico.

After the rule change, spokespeople from Walgreens and CVS confirmed the chains would offer Mifepristone at locations where it is not against state law, and Rite Aid followed closely behind.

Containers of the medication used to end an early pregnancy sit on a table inside a Planned Parenthood clinic Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, in Fairview Heights, Ill. Women with unwanted pregnancies are increasingly considering getting abortion pills by mail. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) // Insets of CVS and Walgreens

Containers of the medication used to end an early pregnancy sit on a table inside a Planned Parenthood clinic Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, in Fairview Heights, Ill. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson // Insets: CVS and Walgreens).

Students for Life is organizing protests with other pro-life groups, according to a Catholic News Agency (CNA) report. The group’s first major demonstration, entitled “Cancel Abortion Cartels” is set for February 14 at the Walgreens National Headquarters in Deerfield, Illinois. The group has also called for a National Day of Protest at pharmacies across the country on March 4. 

“Our purpose of having these protests is so that we can let ‘Big Pharma’ companies know that it’s absolutely unacceptable to offer abortion at our neighborhood drug stores,” said Caroline Wharton, a writer and press strategist with Students for Life. 

“I don’t want to go into a drugstore and be able to buy my chewing gum and my tights and then get a pill that ends a life. It’s just not acceptable,” she continued.

According to the report, 40 Day for Life is also encouraging peaceful protests at pharmacies during its February 22 – April 2 campaign.

“CVS and Walgreens have replaced Planned Parenthood as the most significant abortion chains in the Western Hemisphere,” Shawn Carney, president and CEO of 40 Days for Life, told CNA on January 24. “With 18,000 locations between the two, and now Rite Aid joining in, we have given the hundreds of 40 Days for Life campaign leaders not currently leading a campaign the opportunity to do so outside a pharmacy.”

Breitbart News reached out to both CVS Health and Walgreens for comment about the protests. CVS Health did not respond by the time of publication, but Walgreens Senior Director of External Relations Fraser Engerman sent a statement stating that the company will dispense abortion bills consistent with federal and state laws. He said:

We intend to become a certified pharmacy under the program. We are working through the registration, necessary training of our pharmacists, as well as evaluating our pharmacy network in terms of where we normally dispense products that have extra FDA requirements and will dispense these consistent with federal and state laws.

Former abortionist Dr. Anthony Levatino explained in his videos about various abortion procedures how drug-induced abortions work. The first drug, Mifepristone, blocks the action of progesterone, which the mother’s body produces to nourish the pregnancy. When progesterone is blocked, the lining of the mother’s uterus deteriorates, and blood and nourishment are cut off to the developing baby, who then dies inside the mother’s womb. The drug Misoprostol (also called Cytotec) then causes contractions and bleeding to expel the baby from the mother’s uterus.

The pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute found that Mifepristone is used for more than half of all abortions in the United States. In 2020, the drug accounted for 53 percent of all abortions, up from 39 percent in 2017.