DOJ settles with pro-life father of 11 arrested in a predawn raid

July 29, 2026

The U.S. Department of Justice has settled with a Christian father of 11 after federal agents arrested him in a predawn raid for singing and praying outside an abortion clinic in Tennessee.

The Christian Post reports that The Thomas More Society announced Tuesday that pro-life activist Paul Vaughn reached a settlement with the DOJ as compensation for his arrest during a 2022 raid.

The settlement comes more than a year after Trump pardoned Vaughn on charges that he violated the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act.

Vaughn was indicted in 2022 by the Biden DOJ and shortly after the indictment, the FBI arrested Vaughn in an early-morning raid at his Tennessee home.

Thomas More Society Senior Counsel Steve Crampton said that Vaughn was targeted for bearing witness to his faith and that the family did nothing wrong.

Crampton said, “What was done to Paul and his family was a profound injustice, and we are grateful that this settlement acknowledges that.”

According to the Christian Post, Crampton commended the Trump administration for “having the courage to look at what its predecessor did, call it … an abuse of power and change course.”

Vaughn said he’s grateful the settlement “brings an end to this portion of the story,” and expressed gratitude to members of the DOJ who were willing to make right what the prior administration had done to his family.

Vaughn said, “I am grateful to President Trump for the pardon that restored my good name, Thomas More Society for their tireless defense, and the countless people who stood with us in prayer.”

Nearly two dozen pro-life activists charged with FACE Act violations under the Biden administration received a pardon from Trump during his second term’s first week.

Photo: top, Credit: Thomas More Society