Great news. I think they should have further limitations, but we'll take what we can get a little at a time.

And as a fellow clinic defender from waaaaaaaaay back in DC, I can assure everyone here that your description of Anti Attacks on health care facilities are NOT about free speech.

I wrote on another post that I've been: cursed, hit, spit on, kicked, pushed, shoved, threatened with a wrench by Antis. They are a very violent people who have and will continue to use physical force to force people to follow their obscure beliefs regardless what United States law says.

15 feet?! 8 feet?!! Isn't that kind of generous? Why aren't these protestors being given all the same freedoms that the Secret Service gave anti-war protestors at the Republican National Convention in NYC during the summer of 2004? As I recall then, the Federal government thought that 1000 yards and out of sight from the target of the protests was plenty of freedom of speech for those protestors. Why give these clinic protestors any more than that?

I think that if the conservative lawmakers were sharp, they'd realize that harassment rights given to abortion clinic protesters would also give harassment rights to protesters at the neighborhood Walmart or give environmental protesters the right to block the entrance to a chemical plant.

If you can chase a fellow citizen down like prey for familiy planning, then all the corporate faceless people can be hunted and photographed and posted on the internet and called at home and their children harassed under these same rights the anti-choice people are trying to get. Would the press be simpathetic to your local Walmart being protested in the same way as a family planning clinic is?

yes, the standards are different. Anyone else who disturbed the peace and harasses the patrons of an organization would be put in jail, but not Antis.

When I was a defender, Antis would chain themselves to the door, forbiding citizena from patronizing legal businessses or charities.

IF I did that at the 7-11 and kept people from their Constitutional right to Slurpees, you can bet your sweet bippie I'd be handcuffed in 10 minutes. I'd probably be pepper sprayed and if I spit or yelled or threaten to hurt a patron the way the Antis do, I'd probably be shot by a police officer.

I'm all for free speech for these protesters under the same terms that protesters agains George Bush get when he blows into town for a visit: put them behind a chain-link fence far enough away that people going to the clinics don't even have to see them.

First of all i want to say GREAT article! Iv just been hired to work in a clinic and after reading this im actually kinda scared! Im really not to sure why this not a HUGE issue for like police..isnt anyone scared of like people bombing the place?? I honestly think the distance they are given is wayy too close 8 feet..WOW..but as far as the regulars who just stand around and really mean no harm..screw them im from PITTSBURGH and ill punch u in the face if u get too close to me!