Federal Judge William H. Pauley III slapped down a planned city law that would have required crisis pregnancy centers to detail what services they provide, including abortion and emergency contraception. Pauley cited free speech and also claimed the law was too politically motivated. The law, which was proposed in the wake of a NARAL study that showed such centers sometimes don’t give women the full picture of their options, counted Mayor Bloomberg and Christine Quinn as its high-profile backers.
Chris Slattery, who founded a group of crisis pregnancy centers, was not exactly measured in his response.
“We think this is a resounding defeat of the Gestapo-like tactics of Christine Quinn and Mayor Bloomberg. This is one of the most important First Amendment decisions in American history, and will very strongly boost pro-life free speech initiatives and protect pregnancy centers not only here in New York, but across America.”
