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The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a request from a group of anti-abortion activists to dismiss the charges against them in a lawsuit brought by Planned Parenthood.
The Center for Medical Progress had asked the Supreme Court to reject Planned Parenthood's allegations that they had committed conspiracy and wiretapping offenses on the part of the federal government. Planned Parenthood also claims that the Center for Medical Progress violated California law by fraudulently accessing its facilities.
The lawsuit filed in 2016 followed the publication by the anti-abortion group of a series of videos mounted the previous year showing Planned Parenthood executives discussing the sale of fetal tissue.
By refusing to hear the case, the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Federal Court of Appeal.
The Center for Medical Progress, led by activist David Daleiden, had claimed that he was exercising his first-amendment rights to make the videos. The group also said the Planned Parenthood lawsuit violates California's "anti-SLAPP" laws, which prohibit strategic lawsuits aimed at silencing individuals or groups.
The publication of Planned Parenthood's videos provoked a public outcry among Washington Republicans, who used these images to argue that the organization needed to be funded. The videos showed no trace of criminal activity, but had triggered several congressional investigations.
Planned Parenthood claimed that it was not making any profit from the sale of fetal tissue to groups doing medical research.
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