Three individuals from Florida have admitted guilt to charges related to their attacks on pregnancy resource centers in the state, including one in Winter Park, during the months of May to July 2022. The Department of Justice (DOJ) identified the individuals as Caleb Freestone, Amber Smith-Stewart, and Annarella Rivera. These individuals specifically targeted pro-life reproductive health facilities that offered patients resources and counseling on alternatives to abortion. The trio vandalized the buildings by leaving threatening messages on the premises.
The defendants pleaded guilty to conspiring to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate employees of the targeted pregnancy resource centers. The attacks took place at night, with the perpetrators wearing masks and dark clothing to conceal their identities. They spray-painted threatening messages like “If abortions aren’t safe then neither [sic] are you,” “YOUR TIME IS UP!!,” “WE’RE COMING FOR U,” and “We are everywhere.”
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division condemned the actions of the defendants, emphasizing that violence and threats have no place in discussions surrounding reproductive rights. The DOJ had previously indicted Rivera and Gabriella Oropesa in March for engaging in a conspiracy to impede employees of reproductive health services facilities from carrying out their duties. Freestone and Smith-Stewart, who were charged in January, were also implicated as co-conspirators in the case.
The threatening messages left by the defendants were consistent with those attributed to the extremist group Jane’s Revenge, which claimed responsibility for vandalizing numerous pro-life centers following the Supreme Court’s decision in the Dobbs v. Whole Women’s Health case that led to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Similar facilities in Hollywood and Hialeah, Florida, were also targeted by the group.
Rivera, Freestone, and Smith-Stewart were accused of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act) by using threats of force to intimidate and interfere with employees at a pro-life center in Winter Haven. The FACE Act prohibits the use or threat of force to harm, intimidate, or obstruct individuals seeking reproductive health services, as well as the intentional damage of facilities providing such services.
Sentencing for the defendants is pending, with each facing a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. The case highlights the importance of upholding the law to protect individuals seeking reproductive health services and those providing them. Such acts of violence and intimidation have no place in civil discourse and must be addressed to ensure the safety and well-being of all individuals involved in these services.
