Abortion opponents coming before the Supreme Court in challenge to state investigation

WASHINGTON (AP) — A faith-based pregnancy center will come before the Supreme Court on Tuesday to challenge an investigation into whether it misled people to discourage abortions.

The facilities often known as “crisis pregnancy centers” have been on the rise in the U.S., especially since the Supreme Court’s conservative majority overturned abortion as a nationwide right in 2022. Most Republican-controlled states have since started enforcing bans or restrictions on abortion, and some have steered tax dollars to the centers. They generally provide prenatal care and encourage women to carry pregnancies to term.

Many Democratic-aligned states have sought to protect abortion access and some have investigated whether pregnancy centers mislead women into thinking they offer abortions. In New Jersey, Democratic attorney general Matthew Platkin sent a subpoena to First Choice Women’s Resource Centers for donor information.

First Choice pushed back, arguing the investigation was baseless and the demand for donor lists threatened their First Amendment rights. They tried to challenge the subpoena in federal court, but a judge found the case wasn’t yet far enough along. An appeals court agreed.

First Choice then turned to the Supreme Court. Executive director Aimee Huber said she hopes the high court will rule in their favor and send a message that protects facilities like hers. “I would hope that other attorneys general who have prosecuted or harmed or harassed other pregnancy centers, or are considering that, would back off as a result of our legal battle,” she said.

New Jersey counters that First Choice is seeking special treatment. The group hasn’t even had to hand over any records since the judge overseeing the case hasn’t ordered it. “The Subpoena itself does not require Petitioner to do anything, and compliance is entirely voluntary,” state attorneys wrote in court documents.

If the Supreme Court sides with First Choice, it would “open the federal courts to a flood of litigation challenging myriad state and local subpoenas,” they argued.

First Choice said access to federal court is important in cases where government investigators are accused of misusing investigative power. The American Civil Liberties Union joined the case in support of First Choice’s free speech argument.

Erin Hawley, an attorney for the conservative Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, said subpoenas can hurt advocacy groups with unpopular points of view. “It is a broad non-ideological issue that really does transcend ideological boundaries,” she said.