The battle over New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin’s harassment of a pregnancy resource center (PRC) continues, and the U.S. Supreme Court is now being asked to step in.
In December of 2023, Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed a lawsuit against Platkin on behalf of First Choice Women’s Resource Centers after Platkin made an “unreasonable and improper subpoena.” The AG, acccording to ADF, “launched an exploratory probe” into First Choice “under the pretense of conducting a civil investigation into possible violations” of New Jersey laws.
According to ADF, Platkin worked with Planned Parenthood to draft a consumer alert warning New Jerseyans against utilizing the free services of PRCs, and then opened a civil investigation into First Choice for alleged violations of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act.
Though there had been no complaints against First Choice, Platkin demanded 10 years’ worth of documentation and records in an apparent ‘fishing expedition,’ looking for any possible evidence of a crime committed by the PRC. ADF noted at the time,
“AG Platkin has never cited any complaint or other substantive evidence of wrongdoing to justify his demands but has launched an exploratory probe into the lawful activities, constitutionally protected speech, religious observance, constitutionally protected associations, and nonpublic internal communications and records of a non-profit organization that holds a view with which he disagrees as a matter of public policy.“
First Choice provided Platkin with 2,300 pages of documents, and ADF filed a lawsuit on the PRC’s behalf in federal court, to stop the AG from forcing the PRC to hand over even more documents.
READ: Group says Planned Parenthood report attempting to smear New Jersey pregnancy centers is ‘unfounded’
However, according to a new press release from ADF, Platkin responded by increasing his harassment of the PRC, filing a countersuit in a state court to force First Choice to hand over more documents. The federal court said that, due to Platkin’s filing in state court, First Choice must pursue its federal claims in a state court before moving on to a federal court.
ADF is asking the Supreme Court to step in to confirm that civil rights plaintiffs do not need to litigate first in state court for constitutional violations. First Choice claims the AG is discriminating against the organization for its pro-life views and violating the organization’s right to free speech.
“New Jersey’s attorney general is targeting First Choice Women’s Resource Centers—a ministry that provides free ultrasounds, baby clothes, and more to its community — simply because of its pro-life views. The U.S. Constitution protects First Choice and its donors from unjustified demands for their identities and from government threats that attempt to shut down their speech because of its viewpoint,” ADF Senior Counsel Erin Hawley, vice president of the ADF Center for Life and Regulatory Practice, said. She added:
The First Amendment protects First Choice’s right to freely speak about its beliefs, exercise its faith, associate with like-minded individuals and organizations, and continue to provide its free services in a caring and compassionate environment to people facing difficult pregnancy circumstances.
The lower courts have wrongly held that First Choice is relegated to state court to present its constitutional claims. That is inconsistent with civil rights law and with the First Amendment.
ADF’s brief explained that, without intervention from the Supreme Court, First Choice and others targeted by state officials will not be able to pursue their claims in federal court, all while Platkin continues his harassment campaign against them.
“New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin has made no secret of his hostility towards pregnancy centers,” the brief said, adding:
He issued a consumer alert — drafted with the help of Planned Parenthood — complaining that such centers do not provide or refer for abortion. He also signed an open letter pledging to take legal action against pregnancy centers. The Attorney General made good on that pledge by issuing an invasive Subpoena to First Choice Women’s Resource Centers, Inc., a collection of five medically licensed centers that offer free medical services and material support to women facing unplanned pregnancies.
Though the Attorney General could not identify a single complaint, he demanded that First Choice turn over years of sensitive internal information — including donor information about nearly 5,000 contributions.
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