3rd Circuit: Hearing on Pittsburgh ordinance restricting pro-life speech outside abortion clinicswww.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4814 ALLIANCE DEFENSE FUND MEDIA ADVISORY ADF attorney available to media following hearing regarding pro-life speech in Pittsburgh PHILADELPHIA — Alliance Defense Fund Senior Legal Counsel David Cortman will be available for media interviews Thursday following a hearing before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit in Brown v. City of Pittsburgh. ADF attorneys are representing a nurse who is challenging a Pittsburgh ordinance that prohibits speech in specified zones outside abortion clinics. “Pro-life advocates shouldn’t be discriminated against for their beliefs,” said Cortman. “The government can’t constitutionally use a highly restrictive ordinance like this to arbitrarily restrict pro-life speech in public areas.” In 2005, the city of Pittsburgh enacted an ordinance that restricted access to the public areas surrounding abortion clinics. The ordinance unconstitutionally restricted the speech of Mary Kathryn Brown, a pro-life nurse who counsels women who have had or who are considering an abortion. Brown has never trespassed or blocked individuals from entering or leaving abortion facilities. Under the ordinance, individuals are prohibited from speaking (or even locating) in the sidewalk area within 15 feet from any entrance to abortion facilities. Moreover, within 100 feet of clinics, individuals must first obtain consent to approach a person closer than 8 feet away before they are permitted to distribute leaflets or handbills; display a sign; or engage in oral protest, education or counseling. In March 2008, ADF attorneys appealed her case to the 3rd Circuit on her request that the ordinance be halted while her case is being litigated (www.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4430). Lawrence Paladin, Jr., of the Paladin Law Offices in Pittsburgh is serving as local counsel in the case. A fact sheet on the lawsuit is available at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/BrownFactSheet.pdf. ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
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