Three anti-abortion activists sentenced to probation in 2021 Tennessee clinic blockade

NASHVILLE, Tennessee — Three anti-abortion activists were sentenced to three years of probation by a federal court on Tuesday for their 2021 blockade of a Tennessee clinic.

James Zastrow, Eva Zastrow and Paul Place were ordered to serve the first 90 days of their sentences under home confinement. They were convicted in April of violating the law for blocking the main entrance to the Carafem reproductive health clinic in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, a town 17 miles (27.36 kilometers) east of Nashville. Police asked them multiple times to leave or move, but they refused and were eventually arrested.

A total of 11 people were convicted over the blockade, including six who were found guilty of more serious crimes. conspiracy charges for their role as organizers. Four of them were sentenced earlier this month to terms ranging from 6 months imprisonment up to three years of supervisionThe sentences were less than what prosecutors had sought, and U.S. District Judge Aleta Trauger said she took into account the defendants’ good deeds in their communities.

The 2021 blockade took place nearly a year before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Organizers used social media to promote and livestream actions they hoped would stop the clinic from performing abortions, according to testimony. They also wanted to use the video as a training tool for other activists, Trauger found.

Judges have agreed to postpone the sentences for three other activists. Eva Edl, Heather Idoni and Chester Gallagher are preparing for trial in Michigan in August on similar charges. One person, Caroline Davis, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in October and cooperated with prosecutors. She was sentenced to three years’ probation in April.