Today Liberty Counsel presents oral arguments before the federal Court of Appeals in its lawsuit against a Harrisburg ordinance, which created unconstitutional buffer zones that silence pro-life speech on public property and sidewalks around abortion clinics. Liberty Counsel represents Becky Biter and Colleen Reilly, who regularly engaged in peaceful sidewalk counseling. They have been harassed and intimated by clinic staff and the local police since the ordinance passed. This ordinance pushes pro-life counselors sometimes 50 feet to more than 70 feet away and prohibits their freedom of speech. Harry Mihet, Vice President of Legal Affairs for Liberty Counsel, will present the argument.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently overturned similar buffer zones in McCullen v. Coakley. Their unanimous decision establishes a strong precedent in favor of this lawsuit. Liberty Counsel’s brief states that “the ordinance has completely abolished free speech in traditional public fora used for the expression of ideas, debate, and protest—specifically, public sidewalks and streets adjacent to health care facilities, including abortion clinics, throughout the City of Harrisburg.”

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