ACLJ Defeats Motions To Dismiss in State-Sponsored Smear Case of Pro-Life Centers – Here’s How It Happened

Last week, the ACLJ, along with our local counsel from Massachusetts Liberty Legal Center, appeared in federal court in Massachusetts to defend our lawsuit on behalf of Your Options Medical, a Christian pro-life Pregnancy Resource Center (PRC) targeted by a state-sponsored campaign to discredit and shut down life-affirming services for women. The lawsuit names Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein, and the abortion activist group Reproductive Equity Now Foundation and its president, Rebecca Hart-Holder, as defendants. Their actions were nothing less than the weaponization of government.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts – using taxpayer dollars – launched an aggressive public misinformation campaign against pro-life pregnancy centers, accusing them of being “deceptive” and “dangerous,” and warned the public against visiting PRCs – even if they are not looking for abortions. These statements were made, not just online on websites and in videos, but on posters, buses, benches – anywhere the state could have them posted publicly, including in areas directly near our client’s locations. The state worked hand-in-hand with Reproductive Equity Now to create the campaign.

The court held a two-hour hearing on two separate Motions to Dismiss filed by the defendants. I personally stood before the judge for over an hour, fielding pointed questions about the claims and evidence that we’ve already presented. The defendants were hoping the court would throw our case out entirely.

They failed.

Instead, the judge granted us leave to amend our complaint and dismissed both Motions to Dismiss as moot. The defendants can submit new motions later, but only after we file our amended complaint. This ruling means our case continues – and we now have the opportunity to make our claims even stronger.

And that’s exactly what we plan to do.

About a year ago, Massachusetts Liberty Legal Center filed a formal public records request (much like a FOIA but on the state level) with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health seeking documents related to the campaign against pro-life pregnancy centers – and their coordination with Reproductive Equity Now. In response, we’ve received more than 8,000 pages of documents. These records confirm much of what we’ve alleged: a calculated effort by government officials, working hand-in-hand with pro-abortion activists, to silence and discredit Christian ministries that offer real alternatives to abortion.

It was in light of this new treasure trove of evidence and the desire to have a thorough record on which to base his opinion that the judge agreed to allow us to amend our complaint, rejecting the attempt of the government and the abortion industry to have our case thrown out.

We will be incorporating these new facts into our amended complaint. The evidence is clear – the state’s campaign wasn’t just political rhetoric or support for abortion. It was an organized effort to suppress the viewpoints of pro-life organizations and intimidate them into silence.

This wasn’t neutral consumer protection or a campaign to inform the public about abortion access – it was a smear campaign, plain and simple. Massachusetts did not issue similar warnings about secular or abortion providers. It did not survey or scrutinize abortion clinics. It focused exclusively on Christian and pro-life organizations that speak truthfully about abortion and offer women material support and alternatives to ending the lives of their unborn children. The state’s conduct is not just discriminatory – it’s unconstitutional.

This case remains one of the most important pro-life and free speech battles in the country. The outcome could set national precedent on whether state governments can team up with abortion activists to suppress the voices of those who offer women hope, help, and life.

We’ll be filing our amended complaint soon. Thank you for continuing to stand with us – and with Your Options Medical – as we fight to defend life, free speech, and religious freedom in court.