Tag Archives: State: Colorado

Religion Clause Blog: The Denver Post reports that as Colorado’s civil union law (see prior posting) took effect just after midnight this morning, hundreds of gay and lesbian couples applied for licences and exchanged vows.

http://www.chieftain.com/news/region/high-court-finds-for-hospital-in-fremont-county-fetus-case/article_56dc4072-ab8a-11e2-84c6-001a4bcf887a.html

LifeNews: The Colorado Supreme Court has decided not to take an odd case in which a Catholic hospital originally claimed an unborn child is not a person.

CBN: The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing what could become a major First Amendment case: should the government be allowed to forbid pro-life protestors from publicly displaying graphic images of aborted babies?

The Denver Channel: The American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado has petitioned the Colorado Supreme Court to overturn a decision that found the Douglas County schools’ voucher program constitutional.

McPherson Sentinel: In its lawsuit against Sebelius, Hercules Industries (a Colorado-based manufacturer of heating, ventilation and air conditioning units owned and operated by the Newland family) is represented by The Alliance Defending Freedom, a public interest legal foundation. In its separate lawsuit against HHS, Colorado Christian University (a nondenominational Christian liberal arts university lead by former U.S. Senator Bill Armstrong) is represented by the public interest legal foundation called The Becket Fund. Huelskamp released this statement . . .

Examiner.com: Attorneys with Alliance Defending Freedom, a pro-life legal group, are representing Byer in behalf of Colorado against Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains and one of its doctors.

Andrew C. McCarthy at NRO: Imagine if we had told the anti-war Left that photos of the abuse at Abu Ghraib prison could not be publicly displayed.

Today, the American Freedom Law Center (AFLC) filed a “Friend of the Court” brief in the United States Supreme Court, urging the Court to review and reverse a Colorado Appellate Court decision which banned the public display of “gruesome” abortion images because they might offend children . . .

Red State: Michael J. Norton, a senior counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom, told Media Trackers that abortion clinics, “should not be able to play by a different set of rules than everyone else.” Norton went on to say that, “All women deserve to be protected, but the abortion industry has long fought to make sure that it doesn’t have to maintain the same safety and sanitary standards as other medical centers.” The case of Ayanna Byer’s botched abortion, and subsequent trip to the emergency room, came as no surprise to Norton, who noted that PPRM treated her “life and health with utter disregard.” Ayanna Byer is currently suing Planned Parenthood Rocky Mountains for malpractice. Byer is being represented by Doug Romero, another attorney affiliated with Alliance Defending Freedom.

LifeNews: Attorneys with Alliance Defending Freedom, a pro-life legal group, filed suit on behalf of a Colorado against Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains and one of its doctors. The mother says the abortion facility forced her to undergo an abortion without anesthesia and then left part of her baby’s body inside of her.

AP: Civil unions for gay couples got the governor’s signature in Colorado on Thursday, punctuating a dramatic turnaround in a state where voters banned same-sex marriage in 2006 and restricted protections for gays two decades ago.

Red State Blog: Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains (PPRM), which currently faces a lawsuit in Colorado for malpractice and health standard violations, is not licensed or regulated as a health clinic under Colorado state policy. A Media Trackers investigation has revealed and PPRM has confirmed that while individual PPRM doctors and nurses are certified at the state level, the clinics themselves only meet federal level standards and regulation dating back to the 1980s.

Alan Sears at Alliance Defending Freedom: From Colorado comes yet another horror story illuminating the true nature of Planned Parenthood – the nation’s largest and most politically powerful abortion provider, which actually prides itself on having helped to kill nearly a million babies over the last three years. While masquerading as a friend of women and a family-planning organization, this billion-dollar international corporation concentrates on meeting its ever-rising quota of abortions, and draws nearly 50 percent of its financial support from your tax dollars.

NY Times: In December, however, when Coy, 6, was a few months into the first grade, the Mathises angrily pulled her out of school after being told that she could no longer use the girls’ bathroom but could instead use a gender-neutral restroom.

LifeNews: Alliance Defending Freedom Allied Attorney Doug Romero of Denver has filed suit against Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains on behalf of Byer. “A woman’s life is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” he says. “What Planned Parenthood did to Ayanna is beyond the pale. They clearly put her through extraordinary cruelty and jeopardized her life. Their actions were intolerable.” “Is this the type of organization American taxpayers should be funding to the tune of $540 million per year?” asks Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Michael J. Norton, a former U.S. attorney for the district of Colorado who helped author an Alliance Defending Freedom report to the U.S. House of Representatives on the fraudulent use of public funding by Planned Parenthood affiliates. “American tax dollars should be used responsibly and for the common good. Planned Parenthood is irresponsible and only promotes its own self-interest. That was clearly seen in what they did to Ayanna.”

Catholic Culture: Senate Bill 11 is particularly troubling because the religious liberty of all Coloradans has been discarded under the guise of equality.

Colorado Connection: Many of those opposed to the bill said that it discriminated against those who are opposed to same-sex civil unions for religious reasons, with an attorney for the conservative group Alliance Defending Freedom equating it to “religious intolerance.”

Reality Check: It looks like we’ll have to update that list to 19, because Colorado mortgage banking company Cherry Creek Mortgage has just filed suit challenging the mandate as well. Cherry Creek Mortgage is owned by former U.S. Senator Bill Armstrong and does business in 27 states. The company has 730 employees and is represented by Alliance Defending Freedom in its lawsuit.

AP on Google News: Civil unions for gay couples were a rallying cry for Democrats who took control of the Colorado House in last year’s elections and vowed an early vote on the proposal. They kept their promise Tuesday, passing a bill giving gay couples rights similar to marriage that now goes to the governor’s desk, where it’s expected to be signed.

Karen E. Crummy and Allison Sherr at the Denver Post(11/8/2012): How did Colorado go from the reddest of red to consecutively blue so quickly?
The answer may lie partly in the state’s changing demography. Colorado’s Latino population has grown 42 percent in 12 years, helping to transform once-reliable Republican areas into swing counties now leaning toward Democrats.

World Net Daily: Americans should be free to honor God and live according to their consciences in their homes, churches, and businesses,” said Senior Counsel Michael Norton of the Alliance Defending Freedom, which is representing Armstrong. “Senator Armstrong believed in that constitutional principle when he served in the U.S. Senate, and he believes in that principle today. He, his fellow co-owners, and family members that work with him believe firmly that no one should be forced to choose between their faith and their job.”

CNA: “Ayanna is very fragile and understandably upset by all of this,” Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Michael Norton told CNA March 6. “However, she’s very brave and has come forward and wants to see Planned Parenthood held accountable for how it treated her. And it should be held accountable.”

One News Now: The lawsuit was filed by Alliance Defending Freedom. ADF senior counsel Michael J. Norton tells American Family News that Christians should be free to practice their faith at church, at home, and in their places of business. “Senator Armstrong believed in that constitutional principle when he served in the United States Senate, and he believes in that principle even more strongly today,” says Norton. “He, his fellow co-owners, and family members who work with him believe firmly that no one should be forced to choose between their faith and their job.

Denver Post (updated): “All the owners are evangelical Christians who specifically object to being forced to provide insurance coverage for abortion-inducing drugs and devices,” said the company’s attorneys with the Alliance Defending Freedom in a statement released late Wednesday.

YouTube: Victims of the Obama Administration’s assault on religious freedom speak out at Rep. Black’s press conference in support of the Health Care Conscience Rights Act. Speakers included:

Denver Post: All the owners are evangelical Christians who specifically object to being forced to provide insurance coverage for abortion-inducing drugs and devices,” said the company’s attorneys with the Alliance Defending Freedom in a statement released late Wednesday.

Michael J. Norton appeared on the Hugh Hewitt Radio Show to discuss: New lawsuit: Planned Parenthood forced, botched abortion. | MP3 audio 5:44 mins

Religion Clause Blog: In Sioux Chief Mfg. Co., Inc. v. Sebelius, (WD MO, Feb. 28, 2013), a Missouri federal district court, with the consent of both parties, enjoined enforcement of the Affordable Care Act contraceptive coverage . . . he complaint (full text) in Armstrong v. Sebelius, (D CO, filed 3/5/2013), alleges . . . Because there was not time to seek judicial relief before Jan. 1, the company (at least temporarily) kept the same coverage to comply with the mandate. An ADF press release reports on the filing of the lawsuit.

NC Register: Those who testified against a Colorado civil unions bill last week included a Catholic man with same-sex attraction and a Colorado attorney general who was adopted through Catholic Charities.

Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing a Colorado mortgage banking company co-owned by former U.S. Sen. Bill Armstrong filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against the Obama administration’s abortion pill mandate.

World Net Daily: Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Gregory S. Baylor pointed out that “neither the U.S. nor the Colorado constitutions allow a school that meets all other qualifications to be kept out of a religiously neutral program solely because the school’s core values are grounded in religious convictions.” “These schools provide an excellent education that meets all state standards,” he said. “It is good that they will continue to be welcomed into voucher programs like this one so that students, the community, and the government will all benefit.”

Eugene Volokh at the Volokh Conspiracy: Monday I filed a cert petition in Scott v. Saint John’s Church in the Wilderness, together with co-counsel Rebecca Messall, Thomas Brejcha, Peter Breen, and Jocelyn Floyd. I’m pleased to say that I’ve taken on the project pro bono, because I think it involves a very important First Amendment issue.

Denver Post: Former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb on Saturday confirmed the fears of some Republicans, saying civil unions aren’t enough and the next step for same sex-couples is gay marriage.

Albert Mohler: The Colorado legislature is considering the repeal of laws in the state that criminalize adultery or any act that would “promote sexual immorality.” According to Lynn Bartels ofThe Denver Post, the process of repeal is now well underway, with the House Judiciary Committee voting 8-3 to take adultery and sexual immorality out of the criminal code in Colorado. | Audio Broadcasts at AlbertMohler.com – 3-4-13

Townhall: Ayanna Byer, 40, filed suit Feb. 6 against Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains, alleging an unnamed doctor at the clinic performed an abortion on her in November even though she told him she had changed her mind, according to the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which is representing her.

The Colorado Court of Appeals Thursday upheld the constitutionality of a Douglas County voucher program that pays for students who attend “private school partners” rather than government-run schools.

GOP USA: Romero would not comment on the lawsuit. Byer was referred to Romero by Michael Norton, a senior counsel at the Alliance Defending Freedom, which connects Christian lawyers and advocacy groups. Norton said he does not think women’s health is Planned Parenthood’s priority. “They’re concerned about promoting abortions,” he said. “The bottom line for Planned Parenthood is not women’s health, it’s revenue.”

American Spectator: In a 2-1  decision, a three-judge panel of the Colorado Court of Appeals threw out a lower court’s injunction against the Douglas County School District’s voucher program, an injunction which has been in place since 2011.

Colorado Springs Gazette: Romero would not comment on the lawsuit. Byer was referred to Romero by Michael Norton, a senior counsel at the Alliance Defending Freedom, which connects Christian lawyers and advocacy groups. Norton said he does not think women’s health is Planned Parenthood’s priority. “They’re concerned about promoting abortions,” he said. “The bottom line for Planned Parenthood is not women’s health, it’s revenue.”

Medill Reports Northwestern.edu: Tyndale’s pro bono attorney, Matthew Bowman of Alliance Defending Freedom, believes the for-profit publishing company should be able to advocate on its own behalf. “I think it’s a pattern throughout the Obama administration’s tenure,” he said, “where they are taking large areas of human activity – like healthcare, or education, or business – and saying that because the government wants to control those areas, the government is going to declare that religious freedom does not exist in those areas.” Bowman said he expects the lawsuit to run through the summer, at least. In the meantime, it will be business as usual at Tyndale House. “We’re not going to do anything different than we’ve been doing for many years: continuing to sell Christian-oriented books and Bibles,” Mark Taylor said (includes Tyndale timeline)

Religion Clause Blog: In Briscoe v. Sebelius, (D CO, Feb. 27, 2013), a Colorado federal district court refused to grant a temporary restraining order to a for-profit corporation, two related for-profit LLCs and their evangelical Christian owner who were challenging the application of the Affordable Care Act contraceptive coverage mandate to them.

Denver Post: The parents of a transgender 6-year-old have filed a complaint with the Colorado Civil Rights Division because Eagleside Elementary School in Fountain banned the first-grader from using the girls’ restroom.

One News Now: “Well, I think that there [are] sort of public policy reasons for discouraging the repeal of the prohibition of adultery,” she notes. “And also, this bill includes the elimination of crimes against promoting sexual immorality, and the reasons for not wanting to repeal this language include disrupting families, promotion of prostitution and unwed pregnancies.”

World Net Daily: They’re targeting 12 key states: Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Alaska, Arkansas, Nevada, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia and West Virginia. The strategy was profiled Monday by David Brody of CBN News. Brody said the groups – led by the American Renewal Project – are planning briefings for evangelical pastors, voter-registration drives and other events in an attempt “to restore American to its Judeo-Christian heritage.”

Mike Norton appeared on the Zeb Bell Show to discuss this: New lawsuit: Planned Parenthood forced, botched abortion. | MP3 audio 11:26 mins

Global Dispatch: Earlier this month, Ayanna Byer, through the assistance of the attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom, brought a lawsuit to hold Planned Parenthood liable for the botched abortion that she did not consent to . . . The complaint states . . .

Patheos: Earlier this month, Byer, through the assistance of the attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom, brought a lawsuit to hold Planned Parenthood liable for the botched abortion that she did not consent to.

Charisma News: “A woman’s life is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” said Alliance Defending Freedom allied attorney Doug Romero of Denver. “What Planned Parenthood did to Ayanna is beyond the pale. They clearly put her through extraordinary cruelty and jeopardized her life. Their actions were intolerable.” . . . “Is this the type of organization American taxpayers should be funding to the tune of $540 million per year?” said Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Michael J. Norton, a former U.S. attorney for the district of Colorado who helped author an Alliance Defending Freedom report to the U.S. House of Representatives on the fraudulent use of public funding by Planned Parenthood affiliates. “American tax dollars should be used responsibly and for the common good. Planned Parenthood is irresponsible and only promotes its own self-interest,” Norton added. That was clearly seen most vividly in what they did to Ayanna.”

Daily Mail: It is not acceptable to refer your patients to the Emergency Department and assume the on-call doctor will take care of any complications and assume all the risk associated with the complications,’ he said in a statement, provided to Alliance Defending Freedom – the non-profit legal advocacy group handling the woman’s case.

Alliance Defending Freedom at LifeSiteNews: “Is this the type of organization American taxpayers should be funding to the tune of $540 million per year?” said Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Michael J. Norton, a former U.S. attorney for the district of Colorado who helped author an Alliance Defending Freedom report to the U.S. House of Representatives on the fraudulent use of public funding by Planned Parenthood affiliates. “American tax dollars should be used responsibly and for the common good. Planned Parenthood is irresponsible and only promotes its own self-interest. That was clearly seen most vividly in what they did to Ayanna.”

LifeNews: “A woman’s life is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” said Alliance Defending Freedom allied attorney Doug Romero of Denver. “What Planned Parenthood did to Ayanna is beyond the pale. They clearly put her through extraordinary cruelty and jeopardized her life. Their actions were intolerable.” . . . “Is this the type of organization American taxpayers should be funding to the tune of $540 million per year?” said Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Michael J. Norton, a former U.S. attorney for the district of Colorado who helped author an Alliance Defending Freedom report to the U.S. House of Representatives on the fraudulent use of public funding by Planned Parenthood affiliates. He told LifeNews, “American tax dollars should be used responsibly and for the common good. Planned Parenthood is irresponsible and only promotes its own self-interest. That was clearly seen most vividly in what they did to Ayanna.”

Todd Starnes at Fox News: “A woman’s life is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” ADF attorney Doug Romero said. “What Planned Parenthood did to Ayanna is beyond the pale. They clearly put her through extraordinary cruelty and jeopardized her life. Their actions were intolerable.” . . . ADF alleges that the abortion doctor began the procedure while Byer was fully awake – without any anesthesia.
The court documents state the doctor turned on the vacuum machines and told Byer it was too late to stop the abortion.
“Is this the type of organization American taxpayers should be funding to the tune of $540 million per year?” said ADF senior counsel Michael Norton. “Planned Parenthood is irresponsible and only promotes its own self-interest. That was clearly seen most vividly in what they did to Ayanna.” [Alert Editor: Doug Romero is an Allied Attorney; Alliance Defending Freedom Logo embedded in this report]

Live Action News (linked on the Drudge Report): Earlier this month, Byer, through the assistance of the attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom, brought a lawsuit to hold Planned Parenthood liable for the botched abortion that she did not consent to . . . Michael Norton, senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom, believes that taxpayer dollars should not be used to support this type of organization: Is this the type of organization American taxpayers should be funding to the tune of $540 million per year?

WorldNetDaily: “Is this the type of organization American taxpayers should be funding to the tune of $540 million per year?” said Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Michael J. Norton, a former U.S. attorney for the district of Colorado who helped author an Alliance Defending Freedom report to the U.S. House of Representatives on the fraudulent use of public funding by Planned Parenthood affiliates. “American tax dollars should be used responsibly and for the common good. Planned Parenthood is irresponsible and only promotes its own self-interest. That was clearly seen most vividly in what they did to Ayanna.”

David Bohon at The New American: ADF Senior Counsel Michael J. Norton, a former U.S. Attorney who helped author an ADF report to the U.S. House of Representatives on alleged Planned Parenthood fraud, noted that the abortion giant receives more than $540 million per year in federal funding. “American tax dollars should be used responsibly and for the common good,” he said. “Planned Parenthood is irresponsible and only promotes its own self-interest. That was clearly seen most vividly in what they did to Ayanna.”

LifeNews: “A woman’s life is more important than Planned Parenthood’s bottom line,” said Alliance Defending Freedom allied attorney Doug Romero of Denver. “What Planned Parenthood did to Ayanna is beyond the pale. They clearly put her through extraordinary cruelty and jeopardized her life. Their actions were intolerable.”

Woman says abortionist forced her through abortion without anesthesia,
left part of baby’s body inside her

Kathryn Jean Lopez at National Review: “Plaintiff Stephen W. Briscoe is a believing and practicing Evangelical Christian,” the brief in the case filed by the Alliance Defending Freedom in federal district court in Colorado explains. Briscoe runs several assisted-living centers and skilled nursing facilities for seniors and “sincerely holds religious beliefs that God mandates respect for the sanctity of each human life and that abortion and abortion-inducing drugs result in the wrongful taking of a human life. Mr. Briscoe seeks to run his businesses in accord with his sincerely held religious beliefs,” the brief reads. Briscoe, who became the first business owner to join over 130 plaintiffs suing over the HHS mandate since the latest insufficient “accommodation” was issued, talked to National Review Online’s Kathryn Jean Lopez.

Denver Post: A Senate bill that would ban sex-selection abortions and a House measure to “preserve religious freedom” died in their Democratic-controlled committee hearings Monday.

On Top Magazine: Christian conservative groups which oppose the measure, such as the Alliance Defending Freedom and CitizenLink, the political arm of Focus on the Family, have previously said that the measure threatens religious freedom.

Christian Post: “Americans should be free to honor God and live according to their consciences no matter where they are. A person’s faith convictions don’t disappear the moment he or she steps outside of a church building,” said ADF Senior Counsel Michael J. Norton, a former U.S. attorney. “This lawsuit puts a glaring light on the fact that the Obama administration just doesn’t understand what religious freedom really is. All Americans have a God-given freedom to live and do business according to their faith, and the First Amendment has always protected that.”

Religion Clause Blog: The complaint (full text) in Briscoe v. Sebelius, (D CO, filed 2/4/2013), alleges that plaintiff Stephen Briscoe, owner of affiliated corporations and LLCs that operate senior independent living, assisted living and skilled nursing facilities, believes that furnishing coverage for contraceptives that may prevent implantation of an already fertilized egg is a sin for which he will be held accountable . . . Alliance Defending Freedom announced the filing of the lawsuit.

LGBTQ Nation: “The so-called religious protections put forth in the proposed legislation are not only inadequate, but the extreme narrowness of those protections suggests intent to legislate prejudice toward individuals who possess deeply-held religious beliefs about sexual unions or marriage,” said Kellie Fiedorek, a representative for Alliance Defending Freedom at a Jan. 23 Colorado Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on a bill that would establish civil unions in Colorado.

Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys and allied attorneys have filed the first legal challenge to the Obama administration’s abortion pill mandate since the announcement last week of additional proposed rules that do not respect the religious freedom of family business owners. The federal lawsuit was filed Monday on behalf of the owner of several small businesses that run senior living centers and skilled nursing facilities in Colorado.

AP: On Monday, the hospital and the state’s bishops released a statement acknowledging it was “morally wrong” to make the legal argument.

Denver Post: Colorado lawmakers are considering a Republican proposal to ban abortions and make it a crime to perform them.

9News.com: Police are investigating a mysterious case in Evergreen where paint stripper was thrown on cars parked in a church parking lot.

Denver Post via Google News / PressDisplay.com: The Alliance Defending Freedom has brought a caseonbehalf of Hercules Industries, a Denver-based company that makes sheet-metal products. It was granted an injunction by a judge in Colorado who said the religious values of the family ownerswere infringed by the law. “Two-thirds of the cases have had injunctions against Obamacare, and most are headed to courts of appeals,” said Matt Bowman, senior legal counsel for the alliance. “It is clear that a substantial number of these cases will vindicate religious freedom over Obamacare. But it seems likely that the Supreme Court will ultimately resolve the dispute.”

On Top Magazine: Christian conservative groups which oppose the measure, such as the Alliance Defending Freedom and CitizenLink, the political arm of Focus on the Family, have previously said that the measure threatens religious freedom.

Denver Catholic Register: “There is no need to force individuals to violate their deeply held religious beliefs,” said Kellie Fiedorek with the Alliance Defending Freedom. “Yet we’ve handled multiple cases where laws expanding sexual liberty have negatively impacted regular every …

Americans United for Separation of Church and State: In a friend-of-the-court brief, Americans United urged the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold the Obama administration’s contraceptive mandate, which requires most businesses to provide workers with a health insurance that includes no-cost birth control.

Michael Norton on AM 91 Point of Faith with Roy Hanschke and Denise Washington-Blomberg | Roy MP3 audio 8:02 mins

NC Register: Around 200 opponents of a Colorado civil unions bill rallied at the state capitol Jan. 25, warning that the legislation not only redefines marriage but could shut down Catholic adoption agencies in the state.

On Top Magazine: The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) has criticized a proposed civil unions bill in Colorado, saying it would violate religious freedoms. The ADF is the leading group representing clients who claim gay marriage laws violate their Christian beliefs. At a Senate committee hearing held last week, Kellie Fiedorek, litigation counsel with ADF, testified that . . .