As Twitchy reported in March, prosecutors in California charged David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt of the Center for Medical Progress with 15 felony counts related to their undercover videotaping that exposed the gruesome methods Planned Parenthood used to preserve organs from aborted babies, as well as some haggling over the prices of those baby parts.
On Wednesday, LifeNews reported that the San Francisco Superior Court had dismissed 14 of the 15 felony charges.
https://twitter.com/AdamBaldwin/status/877689101964541952
BREAKING: Court Dismisses Bogus Charges Against David Daleiden for Exposing Planned Parenthood https://t.co/C9M3PQ1rWQ #tcot #prolife pic.twitter.com/eiYLJsZQzq
— LifeNews.com (@LifeNewsHQ) June 21, 2017
He should get a medal, but oh he's for the unborn and a republican, sorry
— Robert (@robertjackma) June 21, 2017
The San Francisco Superior Court on Wednesday dismissed 14 of 15 criminal counts but the pair are still charged with one count of conspiracy to invade privacy. However the court dismissed the charges with leave to amend — meaning Becerra could re-file the charges with additional supposed evidence against the pair.
…
San Francisco County Superior Court Judge Christopher Hite gave the state attorney general’s office until mid-July to file a revised complaint.
Court Dismisses 14 of the 15 Counts Against Sandra Merritt #DefundPP https://t.co/hYR1dwwFDa pic.twitter.com/DOYwe9C5Ty
— Liberty Counsel (@libertycounsel) June 21, 2017
Liberty Counsel, a nonprofit organization that represented Merritt, issued a press release:
Liberty Counsel argued that the criminal complaint for illegally recording supposedly “private” conversations (in restaurants, hotel lobbies and other public places) – the first ever filed against undercover journalists – was legally deficient for numerous reasons, not the least of which was the Attorney General’s decision to prosecute Merritt in secret proceedings, without identifying even the names of her accusers or purported “victims.”
Recommended
Kemberlee Kaye at Legal Insurrection noted that, in her analysis, “the only charge that might have some legitimacy was the last charge which addressed Merritt and Daleiden’s use of an expired employee ID to login to the Stem Expresses system.”
Charges filed against Daleiden in Texas were dropped last summer. He tweeted today:
My videotaping isn't any different from what local news does every day in California–but I exposed AG's sacred cows @PPact @NatAbortionFed
— David Daleiden (@daviddaleiden) June 21, 2017
* * *
Related:
LA Times holds nose, defends 'misguided' undercover Planned Parenthood video makers against overreach https://t.co/BpuEudoGVy
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) March 31, 2017
Join the conversation as a VIP Member