Yet another pro-life activist has been targeted by the Biden administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ). On October 14, Herb Geraghty, 26, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was indicted on federal charges under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act. He is also charged with “Conspiracy Against Rights” offenses.
The charges stem from a Red Rose rescue action at the Washington Surgi-Clinic abortion facility in Washington, D.C., on October 22, 2020. The rescue action in question was live-streamed on Facebook by the group DC Area Anti-Abortion Advocacy. Geraghty is being added to the initial indictment, which originally named nine defendants: Lauren Handy, Jonathan Darnel, Jay Smith, Paulette Harlow, Jean Marshall, John Hinshaw, Heather Idoni, William Goodman, and Joan Bell.
According to a Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising (PAAU) press release, “Geraghty is the Executive Director of Rehumanize International, a founding board member of Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising, and is the first atheist to be charged with alleged violations of FACE.”
If convicted of the offenses, each defendant faces up to a maximum of 11 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $260,000.
Terrisa Bukovinac, Founder and Executive Director of PAAU, stated: “We stand in solidarity with Herb and the others being ruthlessly prosecuted by the Biden Administration and Garland’s DOJ. This abuse of power is an unacceptable violation of our constitution. We believe Herb will be vindicated from these draconian charges and we will not allow the Abortion Industrial Complex to use fear, isolation, and the threat of incarceration to stop us from protecting unborn children from their killers.”
Earlier this month, 11 individuals were arrested by the FBI on FACE Act charges related to a peaceful protest at the Carafem abortion facility in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee in March 2021. One of the eleven, Eva Edl, is an 87-year-old concentration camp survivor. Meanwhile, in late September and early October, two families with young children were subjected to armed FBI raids, each for the purpose of arresting a single, unarmed, pro-life individual.
The FACE Act is designed to protect access to abortion facilities, churches and houses of worship, and pregnancy resource centers. According to a recent letter written to FBI Director Wray by Republican Members of Congress, there have been over 72 attacks against pregnancy resource centers and 80 attacks against churches since the leaking of the draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. However, the FBI has thus far failed to pursue FACE Act prosecutions against the perpetrators of these crimes with even a modicum of the vigor they have applied to the pursuit of pro-life activists.
