Tyler Brooks, an attorney for the Thomas More Law Center, uncovered some startling information during cross-examination at a hearing held by U.S. Federal District Court Judge Carol Bagley Amon. The hearing would determine whether or not New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s request for an injunction, which bars pro-life sidewalk counselors from coming within 16 feet of Choices, an abortion facility, will be approved. Brooks was questioning a witness, who admitted to creating a fake Facebook profile, in which she pretended she was a pro-life Christian, to deceive pro-lifers and entrap the sidewalk counselors who would appear in front of Choices. The state attorney’s office was aware of her deception.
During the testimony, the witness admitted to creating a profile under the name of “Shelly Walker.” She stole someone else’s photos, pretended she was a bank teller from Saginaw, Michigan, and even posted about the weather there. She befriended hundreds of pro-lifers, claimed to be a fan of Ted Cruz and Father Frank Pavone, leader of Priests for Life. She claimed to have been pressured into having an abortion by her ex-husband, which was a story she made up to gain sympathy.
The witness is, in reality, not just pro-abortion, but an escort leader for Choices, who solely was looking to gain information about pro-lifers, which she placed in dossiers and gave to the attorney general’s office. Even though they knew about her deceptive activity, they never sought to stop her or reject the information she gave them — even though just three weeks ago, the attorney general boasted about his crackdown on fake identities, fraud, and impersonations online.
Instead, according to a press release, “the [attorney general’s] Office outfitted [the witness with the fake identity] with a concealed video camera to record pro-life counselors in front of Choices.”
Also, according to the press release, the AG held a press conference in June announcing “his lawsuit against fourteen pro-life sidewalk counselors, claiming they violated the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (“FACE”), the New York State Clinic Access Act and City laws. His lawsuit asked the Court to create a sixteen-foot buffer zone around the Choices premises and to levy fines, attorney fees and compensatory damages against the defendants.” He also shockingly claimed, “We are not a nation where you can choose your point of view,” adding that pro-life Christians “run their mouths” with “unlawful, un-American rhetoric.”
Thomas More Law Center counsel Richard Thompson responded by saying, “I’m appalled at the Attorney General’s lack of respect for the First Amendment…. He has forsaken his responsibilities as an independent law enforcement officer and is now acting as an agent of the abortion industry.”
