Judge rules that anti-Planned Parenthood activists can give Congress undercover videos

[alp227]

Source: Politico

Heading off a potential constitutional clash, a federal judge ruled Tuesday that anti-abortion activists can hand over unreleased undercover sting videos and outtakes subpoenaed by a House committee even though a court order remains in place barring those activists from releasing the materials publicly.

U.S. District Court Judge William Orrick said Tuesday that he would not prevent activist David Daleiden and the Center for Medical Progress from complying with the subpoena issued last month by House Oversight and Government Affairs Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz.

"Congress has the power to investigate, and it is not up to the courts to go beyond the narrow confines of determining that the committee’s inquiry is in its province. ... Nor may courts assume (and I do not assume) that an unworthy purpose prompts a congressional act," Orrick wrote in his order (posted here). "And, importantly in our Constitutional system, there are three equal branches of government, and courts should refrain from creating needless friction with a coordinate branch of government."

The videos in dispute are part of a broader set of videos that have prompted national controversy and led to Republican calls for the defunding of Planned Parenthood. The footage already made public shows doctors and other clinic personnel discussing details of fetal tissue donation practices while dining at restaurants.


Read more: http://www.politico.com/blogs/under-the-radar/2015/10/planned-parenthood-abortion-videos-undercover-214486

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Orrick is an Obama nominee to the US District Court for the Northern District of California, in San Francisco.

[yeoman6987]

1. Not great but I understand why.

[Darb]

2. Oh I'm certain they will bring it all. All that backs their bullshit and

leave the rest behind in their delete bin on some hard drive in the landfill.

[restorefreedom]

3. i don't have a problem

if the videos origins can be corroborated. even if they are from anti abortion groups, put it all out there and let congress see it.

at least then they can sort out the pp from the other videos and straighten it out once and for all.

[eggplant]

4. Because they've done so well with their other witch hunt committees. n/t

[restorefreedom]

6. congress is a joke, we know that

but if they can sort out the Planned Parenthood stuff from the material provided by other groups and at least get that straightened out, then maybe they'll leave Planned Parenthood alone.

[eggplant]

9. What exactly is there to sort out? n/t

[restorefreedom]

11. the videos apparently contain a string of clips

from at least two, maybe more, sources. the famous fiorina clip was not even pp footage. if the republicans want to hang their hat on shutting down pp for things they did not even do, then that video footage needs to be analyzed in full. then they can separate "this was said/done at pp" vs "this happened elsewhere."

and when it is shown with their own data that pp did nothing illegal, we can stop this nonsense about shutting the govt in order to try and defund them.

[eggplant]

12. You don't have to "analyze the video" for that.

Multiple states Attorneys General have investigated and exonerated PP.

Dragging this out in hearings is just playing the Repub's game.

[restorefreedom]

13. in that case, they still won't "find" anything

they will also unfortunately waste taxpayer money, but since the overwhelming majority of people support some form of choice, they won't win any friends come election time but rather show their true extremist colors (ala "legimate rape" and so forth).

[TexasBushwhacker]

7. I would demand that they are unedited though

It has been confirmed by experts that some if these videos have been edited. One thing that's especially problematic is that the camera is pointed at the Planned Parenthood staff, but any questions or from the spy are off camera. Could those questions or comments be changed or added? You bet! Could statements by Planned Parenthood staff when the camera isn't pointed at their face be changed or added? You bet!

The video that Carly Fiorina spoke of (so says the person who posted it on YouTube) shows a woman giving birth to a living but hopelessly tiny baby. It's more likely this was a miscarriage. The audio was removed. If audio can be removed, it can be changed.

[restorefreedom]

10. i agree

unedited and source verified. and even if they show unfortunate events such as a misscarriage, at least we can get the "planned parenthood is selling baby parts" issue off the daily news.

[yellowcanine]

5. "Nor may courts assume (and I do not assume) that an unworthy purpose prompts a congressional act,"

Heh.

[24601]

8. William Orrick was appointed to the courts by President Obama. Previously he served in the Obama

Administration, in the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.

[Judi Lynn]

14. I went to get his photo to take a hard squint at his face, found this unexpected message:

[center][/center]