“We’re obviously disappointed with this ruling,” said Tom Brejcha, president and chief counsel of the Thomas More Society, “but we remain committed to doing everything we can possibly do to bring these appeals to a speedy and positive conclusion.” He added, “The ACLU’s latest constitutional attack on this law was deemed legally meritless and tossed out of court by the Cook County trial court, and yet the Attorney General agreed—inexplicably and without any legal basis—that the enforcement of parental notice should still be stayed, that is, suspended pending the outcome of ACLU’s appeal.”

“Our clients, who are Illinois State’s Attorneys, were denied leave to intervene to argue against this indefinite stay of enforcement. So, we’re pressing our appeal to put the Parental Notice Law into effect, sooner rather than later. An overwhelming majority of Illinois citizens believe that parents should know when their minor daughters are being taken to abortion clinics, and this ongoing delay over baseless legal challenges is unconscionable.”

TMS is currently seeking disclosure of public records to find out why Hodari was not charged when human remains and confidential patient records were found in his dumpster. Read more on the case here.

Lansing, Michigan—Yesterday, Thomas More Society attorneys filed a lawsuit to compel disclosure of public records that indicate why a doctor in Michigan was not punished for tossing aborted fetuses and patient records in the trash. Robert Fleming, local counsel for the Chicago-based Thomas More Society, filed the lawsuit on behalf of Monica Migliorino Miller, Ph.D. and Citizens for a Pro-Life Society (CPLS) in Ingham County Circuit Court.

Dr. Miller, president and director of CPLS, filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to learn the results of an investigation of Dr. Alberto Hodari and his abortion clinic, the Women Care Clinic in Lathrup Village, Mich. The investigation was brought on after CPLS found patient medical and financial records as well as the remains of aborted fetuses in trash containers outside the Women Care Clinic in 2008. Dr. Miller and CPLS then filed the complaint as well as evidence of their discovery with the Bureau of Health Professionals and the local police department. Dr. Miller’s and CPLS’ FOIA request was denied earlier this year when they were told only that there was insufficient evidence to “substantiate” their charges, without any explanation as to why or how their evidence was deemed deficient.

“The Freedom of Information Act is meant to foster transparency and openness in government, and this pro-life group and its leader, who uncovered Dr. Hodari’s despicable actions, have been left completely in the dark,” said Tom Brejcha, president and chief counsel of the Thomas More Society. “The public has a right to know the details as to Dr. Hodari’s grievous and gruesome aberration from professional medical norms and simple human decencies.”

The Thomas More Society contends that the cited reason for Dr. Miller’s FOIA denial, “an unwarranted invasion of the individual’s privacy,” is moot, as the medical and financial records found behind the Women Care Clinic were already publicly disclosed and a gross violation of the patients’ rights and expectations of privacy. The Society also asks the court to review the withheld records in chambers to redact or edit out any personal identification or embarrassing details.

A copy of the complaint can be found here.

“Telemedicine abortions are a clear violation of Iowa law, as an abortion can only be performed by a physician, and the drugs used to induce abortion can only be administered in a physician’s office,” said Brejcha, president and chief counsel of the Thomas More Society, who appeared at the hearing at the request of several Iowa pro-life organizations and leaders. “We hope the Iowa Medical Board will properly honor the law of the state and public health will not be put at risk by allowing remote control abortions.”

Under current Iowa law, the performance of an abortion by anyone other than a physician is a Class “C” felony. Brejcha adds that “telemed abortions” flout the protocol for administration of the drugs approved by the FDA, Mifeprex and misoprostol.

The chairman of the Board, Dr. Siroos Shirazi, announced after hearing the arguments that the Board will take all comments into consideration and render a ruling, which could come at the Board’s October meeting.

“More than fifteen years ago, with overwhelming bipartisan support, parental notice was supposedly made the law in Illinois, but as we sit here today, secret abortions on pregnant minors continue unabated,” said Peter Breen, Thomas More Society executive director and legal counsel. “With this motion to transfer, the Supreme Court has the opportunity to immediately and definitively decide the constitutionality of parental notice in Illinois.” (motion after the jump)

Earlier this year, Judge Daniel Riley of the Cook County Circuit Court allowed the Thomas More Society to appear as “friends of the court” as he rejected the ACLU’s Illinois state constitutional challenges to the Parental Notice Act. However, after the decision, both the ACLU and the Illinois Attorney General’s office agreed to an indefinite stay of the law, extending through the duration of the appeal a temporary restraining order entered earlier by Judge Riley.

Since the Parental Notice Act was signed into law in 1995, more than 50,000 abortions have been performed on pregnant minors in Illinois, including almost 5,000 abortions on girls 14 years of age and younger. Illinois is the only state in the Midwest that does not have a law requiring parental notification or consent prior to an abortion, and more than 55,000 abortions have been performed on non-residents in Illinois since 1995, including an unknown number of out-of-state pregnant minors.

While the Act was passed in 1995, it was in late 2006 that the Illinois Supreme Court issued the Act’s required “judicial bypass” rules, which allow a minor a confidential bypass proceeding in court in lieu of notifying her parents. Notwithstanding the bypass rules, the Act also allows a minor to forego notification if she declares in writing that she is the victim of abuse. In early 2009, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit rejected the ACLU’s federal constitutional challenge to the Act.

It is not yet known whether the Attorney General and the ACLU will support, oppose or remain neutral on the motion to transfer.

Thomas More Society Motion to Transfer Parental Notice Appeal to Supreme Court

Thomas Brejcha, TMS President & Chief Counsel, was in court this morning, along with ace defense attorney Patrick Mclain, who volunteered his services to defend Cheryl. “Thank you to Patrick Mclain for his selfless service to assist Cheryl Kennedy to get back on the sidewalk and save more babies,” said Brejcha. Mclain, a former federal prosecutor and former Marine Judge Advocate General officer, had recently contacted Thomas More Society seeking to assist in the pro-life law center’s work.

“We are pleased that for the second time, the City of Chicago has dismissed the false charges of disorderly conduct against a man who was properly and legally exercising his First Amendment rights on the public way,” said Breen, executive director and legal counsel at the Thomas More Society. “We hope these two baseless cases involving alleged ‘Bubble Zone’ ‘infractions’ show the Chicago City Council why it should repeal this controversial ordinance altogether and cease efforts to scare pro-life people away from Planned Parenthood.”

The “Bubble Zone” ordinance applies outside local abortion clinics to prohibit approaching within eight feet of a person to present a leaflet, sign or oral message to that person. The Thomas More Society challenged the constitutionality of this ordinance, in agreement with the ACLU, in 2009.

Avignone’s case is the third “Bubble Zone” case, all of which have been dismissed. On August 3, the City of Chicago dismissed its case against Joe Holland, a Northwestern University graduate student arrested while praying the rosary outside the same Planned Parenthood clinic.

“David did nothing wrong – he was exercising his First Amendment rights on a public sidewalk, and this arrest is another sad attempt at scaring pro-life people away from Planned Parenthood,” said Breen, executive director and legal counsel at the Thomas More Society. In 2009, Breen presented testimony on behalf of the Society that the “Bubble Zone” ordinance is unconstitutional during committee hearings.

On August 3, the City of Chicago dismissed the same charges against Joe Holland, a Northwestern University graduate student who was arrested as he prayed the rosary outside Planned Parenthood’s Near North Side facility. Video of the incident showed Holland standing outside the entrance to the facility and praying, not approaching any individual to leaflet, picket or engage in “sidewalk counseling.”

Breen commented, “David and Joe, arrested within a week of one another, were arrested even though they were both standing still, which is perfectly legal under the ordinance. We call on the City of Chicago to end this pattern of illegal arrests and repeal its ‘Bubble Zone’ ordinance.”

The court previously granted the Thomas More Society permission to serve subpoenas on Planned Parenthood for relevant security footage and on the City of Chicago for relevant “911″ call tapes. The responses to those subpoenas are due today in court.

Chicago—This afternoon, in a wake of national interest in the case, the Thomas More Society secured a dismissal of all charges against the first arrestee under the city’s “bubble zone” ordinance, which prevents certain types of picketing activity outside local abortion clinics. Joseph Holland, a Northwestern University graduate student, was arrested outside Planned Parenthood’s Near North Side facility on July 3 after the facility’s staff called the police and claimed he violated the ordinance by praying on the public sidewalk.

“We are pleased that the City of Chicago has dismissed these false and baseless charges against Joe Holland,” said Peter Breen, Thomas More Society executive director and legal counsel. “The First Amendment protects prayer on a public sidewalk in Chicago the same as in any other city in the country. We hope that the city will cease the suppression of pro-life speech under the ‘bubble zone’ ordinance and dismiss the lone remaining case, brought against David Avignone, who was arrested a few days after Joe.”

The “bubble zone” ordinance prohibits approaching within eight feet of a person without consent “for the purpose of passing a leaflet or handbill to, displaying a sign to, or engaging in oral protest, education, or counseling.” Witnesses and a video of the incident showed Holland standing stationary and praying, but not leafleting, picketing or sidewalk counseling.

Thomas More Society attorneys are also representing David Avignone, the second arrestee under the “bubble zone” ordinance, who was arrested the same week as Holland. Avignone’s first court appearance is August 13 at 1 p.m.

Check out this great video of this morning’s interview on FOX & Friends with Thomas More Society Executive Director Peter Breen and Joe Holland, the grad student arrested for violating Chicago’s “Bubble Zone” ordinance.

Update: Fox news did a follow-up piece on this story that you can read here.

Peter and Joe were also on Moody Radio’s In the Market with Jane Parshall yesterday afternoon. You can hear that interview here. Just click the “Hour 1″ button to hear Peter and Joe’s segment.