*A group of House Democrats is challenging the Justice Department’s prosecution of independent journalist Georgia Fort, warning that the case could set a troubling precedent for reporters covering public demonstrations.
According to LA Focus News, Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, D-Calif., led the letter with support from 33 other members of Congress. The lawmakers asked the department to explain why Fort faces felony charges connected to her coverage of a January ANTI-ICE protest in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Fort, a three-time regional Emmy Award winner and founder of BLCK Press, was arrested at her Minnesota home on Jan. 30. The charges stem from her reporting at a Jan. 18 protest outside Cities Church. The lawmakers said prosecutors have not accused Fort of violence, threats or physically blocking officers or demonstrators.
“Reporting is not a crime,” the members wrote. “The prosecution of a journalist for bearing witness should concern every American who values a free press and the constitutional principles on which this country was founded.”
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The letter focuses heavily on the government’s use of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, known as the FACE Act. Congress passed the law in 1994 to protect access to reproductive health facilities and places of worship.
“The current Administration has spent years criticizing the FACE Act as an example of federal overreach when it was used to protect reproductive health care access. It is now deploying that same statute against a Black woman journalist for documenting a protest,” they wrote.
Members questioned the decision to charge Fort under Section 241, a federal conspiracy statute with a long history in civil rights cases. They also sought an explanation from DOJ officials about why the law applies to Fort’s conduct. Additionally, lawmakers requested information on whether employees in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota faced disciplinary action or reassignment after initially declining to participate in the prosecution.
Signers include Reps. Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressley, Jasmine Crockett, Jonathan Jackson, Lateefah Simon and Adriano Espaillat.
Kamlager-Dove and the other lawmakers asked the Justice Department to provide a formal response.
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