State AG Faces Impeachment Charges For Allegedly Targeting Pro-Life Centers

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New Jersey Republican lawmakers may move in March to impeach the state’s Attorney General Matthew Platkin, accusing him of unlawfully targeting pro-life faith-based pregnancy centers.

GOP legislators filed a five-page resolution in early March in which they claimed Platkin went after “certain organizations based upon the political beliefs of the organization, specifically pro-life pregnancy centers.” Other accusations include using “lawfare” against state troopers and mishandling the overall legal response to the COVID-19 pandemic, CBN noted.

Non-profit legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, is representing First Choice Women’s Resource Centers in a court case against Platkin, alleging that he demanded the pro-life center identify – by name – those behind nearly 5,000 donations, while also producing 10 years of confidential internal documents. The impeachment resolution against Platkin names First Choice as the center Platkin is said to have investigated.

What Are The Details?

Court documents suggest that Platkin was “concerned that a donor may have given to First Choice under the belief that they were an abortion provider,” CBN wrote in their coverage. ADF argues that the First Amendment protects donor identities, while also prohibiting a state from retaliating against speech. Platkin responded to the ADF’s federal suit by filing his own in state court.

After the case moved through the state court, ADF asked the Supreme Court to hear the case, which would allow them to pursue the case through federal courts, CBN added. (MORE: ‘Pause Button’ Needed On Trump’s College Campus Comments, Says Surprising Group Of People)

At the same time, NJ Republicans are calling for Platkin’s removal from office. “As a result of his own political ambition, Matthew Platkin has used the Office of the Attorney General to target individuals he disagrees with politically, which has done professional and financial damage to these individuals and their families and has caused further damage to the reputation of the office,” the GOP wrote in the resolution.

What’s Next?

“I am not going to respond to partisan political attacks. I am focused on the same priorities I have had since day one: driving gun violence down to historically low levels, holding social media corporations accountable for the harms they’re inflicting on our children, and protecting our residents — including by standing up to threats from Washington and fighting corruption, no matter who it offends,” Platkin wrote in a statement, CBN reported.

If a majority of NJ’s Assembly members vote to impeach Platkin, the state Senate will then hold a trial. He would only be removed if two-thirds of the sitting senators vote to convict. (BIG NEWS: Voter ID Laws Look Like The Next Big Target To Infiltrate, Destabilize America’s Elections)

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