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Mother of Seven Nearly Arrested for the Second Time for Showing Abortion Image

By Patrick B. Craine

FREDERICTON, New Brunswick, July 16, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Pro-life activist Suzie Ryan, who was arrested without conviction by Fredericton Police three years ago for picketing with an abortion image, was threatened with arrest again Tuesday morning for holding the same image in the same location.

The incident has raised concerns about police impartiality on the abortion issue and prompted allegations that Fredericton Police Department is failing to respect the civil liberties of pro-life protesters.

The Fredericton Police were called to the local Morgentaler abortuary on Tuesday morning to investigate a complaint made against a peaceful pro-life picket being held outside the facility.  Morgentaler employees had complained to police about 'inappropriate' signs being used by the pro-life activists.

Local pro-lifers meet outside the Morgentaler abortuary regularly on Tuesday mornings.  Signs this week, reported the local Daily Gleaner, included "Abortion Stops a Beating Heart" and a doll with the handwritten statement, "Mom, please let me live."  But police objected to Mrs. Ryan's sign depicting an aborted 10-week-old unborn child.

As LifeSiteNews.com reported at the time, Ryan was arrested in September 2006 for holding the same image of an aborted fetus while picketing outside the same abortuary.  Six to eight police officers arrived on the scene, and without warning her that she was in breach of the law, confiscated her sign and umbrella and forced her into a police car.  She was charged with violating s. 163 of the Criminal Code, which condemns the display of obscene material.

In the end Mrs. Ryan was cleared of all charges, in line with legal precedents regarding the display of similar images elsewhere in Canada.

Peter Ryan, Executive Director of New Brunswick Right to Life (NBRTL), and husband of Mrs. Ryan, sent out a press release Tuesday decrying the incident. 

According Ryan, a female officer identified as Constable Hardy, upon arriving to the scene, immediately attempted to confiscate Mrs. Ryan's sign, calling it "gross."  When Mrs. Ryan explained her legal background with the sign, the officer was unmoved and threatened to arrest her. Mrs. Ryan says she felt forced to withdraw with the sign.

Local pro-lifers charge that the incident illustrates a troubling bias and lack of professional conduct that has also characterized other recent police conduct.

The police, charges NB Right to Life, have also repeatedly failed to take action to deal with cars belonging to Morgentaler personnel and clients illegally parked along the public sidewalk outside the facility. This situation has forced not only pro-life protesters but children attending the adjacent middle school into walking unsafely into the street.

Abortuary personnel have also reportedly taken to closely shadowing some pro-life protesters where they stand or move. One woman who prays regularly at the site says she feels stalked, harassed and intimidated by such behaviour. Yet when she complained on July 7th to police officers who observed the scene, no action was taken.

NB Right to Life has also had experience with the City of Fredericton's unfriendliness to pro-life expression, they say. In December 2007, the City banned a low-key ad displaying a pregnant woman that Right to Life had put up in a bus shelter, with the City justifying their action by saying the ad was "political." The case is currently before the NB Human Rights Commission. In a related case, last week the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Vancouver's blanket ban on political advertising on city buses is unconstitutional.

(Blogger Charles Leblanc has posted his account of the incident on his blog, with numerous pictures and some videos.)

To contact the Fredericton Police Department:

Fredericton Police Force
311 Queen Street
Fredericton, NB E3B 1B1
Phone: (506) 460-2300
Fax: (506) 460-2316

See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:

New Brunswick Fails to Pursue Charges Against Mother of Seven Over Abortion Protest
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/apr/07041601.html

Mother of Seven Arrested Without Warning for Showing Abortion Image
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/sep/06092702.html

Buses Cannot Refuse Political Ads, Supreme Court of Canada Rules in B.C. Case
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/jul/09071001.html

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