Supreme Court unanimous on abortion protests: they're legal.



Supreme Court sides with abortion protesters, rules pro-lifers not extortionists
Feb 28, 2006
By Tom Strode
Baptist Press
WASHINGTON (BP)--Pro-life protesters are not extortionists, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court has ruled, apparently putting an end to a lengthy legal campaign to convince the judicial system otherwise.

The high court ruled Feb. 28 that a federal anti-racketeering law does not apply to protests outside abortion clinics, seemingly bringing closure to a court battle that began nearly 20 years earlier.

It was the third time the case had been before the justices. In 2003, they ruled 8-1 the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), which targeted organized crime, did not apply to such protests. The high court said the pro-lifers did not violate the anti-racketeering law because their activities did not qualify as extortion under a 1946 measure.


Posted: Wed - March 1, 2006 at 06:26 AM           | |

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