David Daleiden, founder of The Center for Medical Progress, has accused California gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra of attempting to criminalize journalism during his tenure as California Attorney General. Becerra allegedly pursued felony charges against Daleiden for undercover reporting that exposed the harvesting and sale of aborted fetal body parts.
Becerra's actions, Daleiden claims, were an unprecedented use of California's law restricting video recording of "confidential" conversations, enacted against newsgathering. This legal action was initiated under then-Attorney General Kamala Harris and continued by Becerra after he took office, leading to 15 felony charges against Daleiden. Even left-leaning media outlets, such as the Los Angeles Times, described the charges as a "disturbing overreach" aimed at protecting a favored interest group, Planned Parenthood.
Legal Battles and Settlements
The legal proceedings against Daleiden saw some charges dismissed over time. Concurrently, two Southern California companies implicated in the reporting reached a nearly $8 million settlement with local law enforcement for illegally selling body parts. However, Becerra reportedly continued to argue that actions like partial-birth abortions or infanticide of infants born alive were not crimes against a "person," thereby exempting the recording of such events from legal restrictions.
The case against Daleiden was ultimately dismissed after the congressional release of seized tapes and the election of President Donald Trump, leading Becerra's successor, Rob Bonta, to negotiate the case's final dismissal.
Daleiden also criticizes Becerra's record as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Biden administration. He alleges that Becerra denied the existence of the federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act and eliminated ethics safeguards for fetal experimentation. Additionally, Daleiden points to HHS enabling Dr. Fauci's alleged cover-up of miscarriage risks associated with early-term COVID-19 vaccinations.
Disclosures and Campaign Tactics
Daleiden's investigative work in 2024 uncovered public records from the University of California and Planned Parenthood in San Diego, revealing differing consent forms for English and Spanish speakers regarding the potential "commercial value" of harvested fetal body parts. The Spanish-language forms reportedly omitted this disclosure.
Daleiden asserts that Becerra, in his current campaign, attempts to control media narratives, citing an instance where Becerra instructed a journalist that an interview was not intended to be a "gotcha piece." Daleiden frames the upcoming election as a critical moment for the First Amendment, suggesting Becerra poses a significant threat to media freedom. He describes Becerra's campaign as a "break the glass" moment, emphasizing the stakes for constitutional rights.