Justice Department Files Suit Against Colorado Couple for Face Act Violations

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today filed a civil complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado against Kenneth and JoAnn Scott for violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act).

According to court documents, from August 2009 to the present, Kenneth Scott has engaged in 10 separate incidents of physical obstruction against patients and staff attempting to enter or exit the Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains (PPRM) facility in Denver. In addition, JoAnn Scott has used physical force against two different individuals seeking to obtain reproductive health services at the PPRM. The FACE Act prohibits the use of force against, or the physical obstruction of, any person providing or obtaining reproductive health services, or those seeking to do so, with the intent to intimidate or interfere with that person.

“The law protects the rights of individuals who seek to obtain or provide reproductive health services to do so without hazardous physical obstructions and the fear of physical assaults,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The right to free speech does not include the right to physically obstruct or use force against individuals seeking or providing reproductive health services, and we will continue to aggressively enforce the FACE Act.”

This civil action was filed by the Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section Deputy Chief Julie Abbate and Trial Attorneys Je Yon Jung and Aaron Fleisher.