Conspiracy Conviction Stands for Woman Who Violated Clinic Law

A reproductive rights activist can’t escape her 120-day sentence for engaging in a conspiracy against rights by planning to and vandalizing crisis pregnancy centers, a federal appeals court said Thursday.

A conspiracy to violate the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which prohibits actions that interfere with people trying to get or provide reproductive health-care services, can be prosecuted under a federal criminal statute that forbids individuals from threatening rights or privileges secured by the US Constitution or federal law, the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit said. The FACE Act and the conspiracy law punish separate ...