President Trump signed pardons Thursday for 23 pro-life protesters who were convicted under the Biden Justice Department.
“They should not have been prosecuted,” Mr. Trump said in remarks from the Oval Office. “Many of them are elderly people. They should not have been prosecuted. This is a great honor to sign this.”
Mr. Trump later blasted the criminal cases against the protesters as “ridiculous.”
He issued the pardons on the eve of the annual March for Life, a massive anti-abortion protest that takes place in Washington to mark the anniversary of the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. Mr. Trump is expected to film a video message for the event.
During the Biden administration, Justice Department prosecutors targeted pro-life activists using the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances, a 1994 law used to prosecute those who attacked abortion clinics and pro-life pregnancy centers. Prosecutors expanded it to prosecute anyone who blocks access to the facilities.
Under the Biden administration, federal prosecutors brought 24 cases against 55 individuals and secured 34 convictions, according to Justice Department statistics. All but two of them were pro-life activists.
Sen. Josh Hawley, Missouri Republican, had called on Mr. Trump to pardon the activists.
“I hope President Trump will shortly pardon the pro-life prisoners unjustly jailed & targeted by the Biden administration,” Mr. Hawley wrote on social media this week.
In a statement, the Human Coalition, a pro-life group hailed Mr. Trump for “remedying a reckless abuse.”
“It is empowering to know that we are marching in a country that no longer weaponizes the justice department against those who are serving and caring for pregnant women and their babies in accordance with their belief in the value of human life,” said Jeff Bradford, the organization’s president.
Among those pardoned by Mr. Trump, 10 are currently imprisoned, including Lauren Handy, who has 57 months left on her sentence, and Jon Hinshaw, who has 21 months left. The protesters were convicted over protests at abortion facilities in Tennessee, Washington and New York.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.