A pro-life activist who has been convicted and sentenced to 90 days in jail for silently praying in a public area near a Michigan abortion facility is calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in his case.
Matthew Connolly, 42, was convicted with violating a vague ordinance in the city of Southfield that criminalizes behaviors causing “annoyance” or “disquiet” in public spaces, according to attorneys with religious liberty firm Advocates for Faith & Freedom.
According to a petition filed July 28, Connolly never entered the abortion clinic, raised his voice or disrupted any activity. Described by law enforcement as “peaceful,” he was arrested while kneeling in prayer in a public common area, attorneys said. After refusing a probation condition that would bar him from engaging in pro-life speech within 500 feet of any abortion facility nationwide — which attorneys argued could potentially restrict access to medical care at hospitals offering abortions — Connolly was jailed and fined.
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Advocates for Faith & Freedom, alongside the American Freedom Law Center, filed a petition for writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, seeking to overturn what they call an unconstitutional gag order on pro-life speech.
“This case is not just about Mr. Connolly,” said attorney Erin Mersino of Advocates for Faith & Freedom. “It is about whether the government can silence pro-life Americans and criminalize public prayer. If this unconstitutional gag order is allowed to stand, then no one’s speech is safe.”
The petition challenges the ordinance’s subjective standard, which attorneys argue chills free expression and invites arbitrary enforcement.
“We are asking the United States Supreme Court to do what the Constitution already demands — protect the right of Americans, especially those who advocate for the sanctity of life, to speak freely, assemble peacefully, and pray publicly,” Mersino added.
Calling it a “pivotal moment for religious liberty and free speech,” Mersino warned the case could have far-reaching legal implications.
“If prayer can be prosecuted, preaching can be banned,” she said. “Silence now will only embolden government suppression of faith-based expression.”
In March 2023, Connolly and three others were booked in Oakland County Jail for their participation in the Red Rose Rescue gathering outside the Southfield abortion clinic. Connolly and one other individual were convicted of trespassing, obstructing/resisting a police officer and disorderly conduct.
In total, six people were detained by police and went limp when they were told they were under arrest, requiring police to use wheelchairs to transport them to police cars, reports The Oakland Press.
This case follows prior legal troubles for Connolly.
In August 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil lawsuit against him for violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act at a Planned Parenthood in Philadelphia. Connolly allegedly barricaded himself in a restroom for over three hours, prompting a SWAT team response and the clinic’s evacuation.
The action, linked to the pro-life group Red Rose Rescue, led to the rescheduling of at least 44 appointments. Prosecutors claimed Connolly was “engaged in conduct calculated to shut down a reproductive health clinic for an entire day.”
Connolly’s legal history includes at least eight arrests across four states for charges like trespassing and resisting arrest, with four convictions. He joined the Franciscan Brothers of Peace in St. Paul in 2009, but did not take final vows, according to the Catholic Review.
