A Florida woman was convicted last week of a civil rights conspiracy in violation of the FACE Act (Freedom of Access to Clinical Entrances Act) for her role in targeting pregnancy resource centers between May and July 2022.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) convicted Gabriella Oropesa of conspiracy to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate employees of pro-life pregnancy resource centers (PRC) in violation of the FACE Act. Oropesa’s crime included acts of vandalism and spray-painted threats, with messages including, “If abortions aren’t safe than niether [sic] are you,” “YOUR TIME IS UP!!,” “WE’RE COMING for U,” and “We are everywhere.”
Oropesa worked with co-conspirators, including Caleb Freestone, Amber Stewart-Smith, and Annarella Rivera to dress in dark clothing and vandalize the PRCs in the dark of night, targeting the facilities because of their pro-life stance. The attacks were carried out in 2022 when PRCs and other pro-life organizations were targeted nationwide as a result of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in its Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling.
READ: How Roe’s reversal triggered the Biden-Harris DOJ’s persecution of peaceful pro-lifers
Freestone, Stewart-Smith, and Rivera all previously pled guilty to the same charges and were sentenced in September.
“The Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act is clear: no one should have to face threats and intimidation just for doing their job,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a statement. “The Justice Department will continue to ensure access to the full spectrum of reproductive health services afforded to the public, whether those services include abortion or counseling on alternatives to abortion.”
“Federal law protects providers who render reproductive health care and those who seek their services,” added U.S. Attorney Roger Handberg for the Middle District of Florida. “Threats of violence against pregnancy resource centers or those exercising their rights to care will not be tolerated.”
According to the DOJ, a sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 19, 2025. Oropesa faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for the conspiracy charge.
Tell President Trump, RFK, Jr., Elon, and Vivek:
Stop killing America’s future. Defund Planned Parenthood NOW!
