Pro-Life Advocate Challenges Colorado's 'Bubble Law,' Citing Free Speech Concerns

A pro-life advocate in Colorado is challenging a state law that prohibits her from approaching individuals within a certain distance of abortion clinics, arguing that the restrictions impede her ability to offer alternatives and infringe upon free speech rights. Wendy Faustin, who provides information about pregnancy resource centers and adoption agencies outside clinics, contends that the law turns potentially compassionate conversations into legal risks.

Colorado's "bubble law," along with a Denver ordinance, prevents individuals from knowingly approaching within eight feet of another person without consent to distribute literature or engage in protest, education, or counseling within 100 feet of a healthcare facility entrance. Violations are classified as a petty offense, punishable by fines or short jail sentences.

Faustin stated that the law forces her to offer information from a distance, which she believes is less effective and can lead to private conversations being overheard. "I believe that every woman who is facing this decision deserves to have all the possible information that she might need," Faustin told Fox News Digital. "Sometimes she’s feeling kind of backed into a corner by circumstances or maybe by other people, and she may not be aware that there can be help somewhere for her through a crisis pregnancy center, an adoption agency."

A federal judge rejected Faustin's challenge to the law last July, and her case is currently on appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. The U.S. Supreme Court previously upheld Colorado's 1993 law in its 2000 decision, Hill v. Colorado, finding that the restrictions did not violate the First Amendment.

Faustin's attorney, Roger Byron of the First Liberty Institute, argued that the case raises fundamental questions about the First Amendment. He asserted that such laws would likely be struck down if applied to other forms of protest, such as anti-war demonstrations or labor strikes, suggesting that pro-life counselors are being treated as "second-class citizens" regarding their free speech rights.

"What’s at stake is the free speech rights of anyone whose message is something other than what the government wants it to be," Byron said. He anticipates that the decision from the Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit could lead to the case being reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court. The office of the Colorado attorney general declined to comment beyond its filings.