Six pro-lifers face FACE Act charges in Tennessee, could see 11 years in jail

January 30, 2024

Six pro-life activists on trial in Nashville, Tennessee are facing federal charges in connection with a 2021 blockade of an abortion clinic in Mt. Juliet, TN.

Catholic News Agency reports that a video posted on March 5, 2021 on Facebook, shows a group of pro-life activists walking into the Carafem Health Center Clinic and singing Christian hymns and praying. Some members of the group are accused of blocking the door by sitting in front of it.

The group ranged in age from elderly to young children and the video shows police demanding that they leave the clinic.

According to Catholic News Agency, some protestors left but those who remained are facing various charges under the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act. Seven of those charged with violating the FACE Act are also charged with an additional count of conspiracy against rights.

If convicted of those charges, the seven defendants could each face up to 11 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000.

The remaining individuals who received misdemeanor charges under the FACE Act alone still face the possibility of up to a year imprisonment and a $10,000 fine.

The FACE Act is the same law under which pro-life father of seven Mark Houck was charged and ultimately acquitted last year.

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