While it can be dangerous for pro-life Americans to stand up for what they believe in and pray for an end to abortion, one battle has finally drawn to a close — with a happy ending.
In a blog post late last week, 40 Days for Life announced that the Department of Justice has settled with pro-life volunteer Mark Houck after a years-long legal battle following a case involving a dispute outside an abortion clinic.
‘All Americans who believe in the rule of law and in the nonpartisan administration of justice should celebrate Mark Houck’s victorious settlement.’
In a video statement announcing the legal win, 40 Days for Life CEO and President Shawn Carney touted the case as a “huge legal victory for free speech.”
Carney added that the change in administration aided efforts immensely, saying, “We got so much persecution from the DOJ under Biden, and President Trump has corrected that.”
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Houck reached a settlement with the DOJ resulting in a payout of over $1 million, according to 40 Days for Life.
C.J. Doyle, the executive director of the Catholic Action League of Massachusetts, said in a statement to Blaze News: “All Americans who believe in the rule of law and in the nonpartisan administration of justice should celebrate Mark Houck’s victorious settlement with the Department of Justice. Houck was the victim of ideologically driven prosecutorial overreach by a corrupt, politicized Biden DOJ which had a history of selective prosecutions of FACE Act cases.”
“This unwarranted prosecution was preceded by a gratuitous, grossly excessive display of force by FBI agents in arresting Houck in front of his family. The attorneys from 40 Days for Life, who represented Houck, are to be commended for their successful defense of the First Amendment guarantees of free speech and the free exercise of religion,” Doyle added.
Houck’s case started in 2021, when he and his son were confronted by an angry abortion escort outside an abortion clinic in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Houck reportedly pushed the escort away in order to protect his son.
The abortion escort fell to the ground but did not sustain any serious injuries.
Subsequently, Houck’s home was raided by armed state and federal agents, after which he was reportedly chained to a table for six hours and threatened with 11 years in federal prison related to violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. He was ultimately charged with intimidating and shoving the clinic escort in violation of the FACE Act.
Houck was quickly acquitted by a jury in January 2023, and because he did not take a deal with the DOJ, he was able to sue for damages after the dramatic arrest in front of his wife and children.
Houck was an early volunteer with 40 Days for Life, which has helped save the lives of over 26,000 babies and helped close over 180 abortion clinics since 2007, according to the organization’s website.
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