On Jan. 4, U.S. District Judge Amy J. St. Eve denied the City of Chicago’s motion to dismiss the federal complaint of the Pro-Life Action League, Live Pro-Life Group, and individual plaintiffs Ann Scheidler, Anna Marie Scinto Mesia, David Berquist and Veronica Price.  Judge St. Eve ruled that the plaintiffs could proceed on their as-applied challenge to Chicago’s so-called “Bubble Zone” ordinance.  She decided that the complaint raised a valid claim for a hearing on whether the Chicago Police enforced the ordinance with “deliberate indifference” toward the rights of the plaintiff sidewalk counselors while counseling clients of Chicago abortion clinics outside the clinics.

Thomas More Society’s challenge to the city’s Bubble Zone Ordinance asserts that the plaintiffs are citizens and organizations “who peacefully exercise their First Amendment rights on the public ways near abortion clinics in the City of Chicago by reaching out to women who are approaching the clinics for the purpose of securing abortion in order to share alternatives and inform the women of the dangers inherent in abortion.”

The complaint asserts that Chicago’s Bubble Zone law unconstitutionally constrains the peaceful work of pro-life sidewalk counselors because police have applied it against pro-lifers but not clinic escorts, and that the law has been applied erratically since it was passed in 2009.  Sufficient instances of discriminatory and erratic enforcement have been alleged, said Judge St. Eve in her ruling.

The Bubble Zone law applies within a 50-foot radius of a clinic entrance and prevents pro-life counselors from intentionally coming closer than eight feet from a person approaching the entrance without the person’s permission.

Thomas Olp, Attorney for Thomas More Society said:‍

“Contrary to pro-abortion propaganda, pro-life counselors do not intimidate women approaching abortion clinics, because such engagement is ineffective. Pro-life counselors do compassionately and calmly approach women one-on-one to offer them information about abortion alternatives. The Chicago Bubble Zone in Chicago is designed to impede -- and does impede -- this communication.  For that and other reasons, we believe the law unconstitutionally curtails our clients’ first amendment rights.”

Read the court’s decision here.