LifeNews.com - NYC Gets Second Lawsuit Over Law Attacking Pregnancy Centers

June 23, 2011

2 min read

by Steven Ertelt | New York, NY | LifeNews.com |

New York City is now officially facing a second lawsuit over a new ordinance the city council approved and Mayor Mike Bloomberg signed that places hefty restrictions on pregnancy centers.

The city council approved the bill on a 39-9-1 vote and the ordinance that would place stringent limits on the advertising pregnancy centers use and require them to post signs designed to dissuade women from seeking their abortion alternatives services. . . .

. . . . Now, officials with the American Center for Law and Justice today filed a federal lawsuit challenging the ordinance. The ACLJ represents numerous crisis pregnancy centers and contends the law violates the U.S. Constitution as well as the New York State Constitution.

Since this ordinance was first proposed, we have put the city council and the mayor on notice that it was unconstitutional and that we were prepared to challenge it immediately if passed. Were now moving forward with that challenge, CeCe Heil, ACLJ Senior Counsel, told LifeNews.

This measure is troubling because it violates crisis pregnancy centers First and Fourteenth Amendment rights, specifically protected by the constitution. We are committed to protecting the rights of our clients and are urging the federal court to halt implementation of this ordinance and declare it unconstitutional. Similar ordinances have already been struck down in federal court and we have no doubt that this ordinance will be rejected as well, the attorney added.

The ACLJ represents EMC Frontline Pregnancy Centers and AAA Pregnancy Problems Center which operate a total of 13 crisis pregnancy centers across New York City. The pro-life legal group filed the lawsuit today on their behalf in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

The lawsuit comes on the same day EMC announced its center in South Bronx was a target of vicious vandalism and burglary. . . .

You can read the entire story here.