Care Net President and CEO Roland Warren, like fellow pro-life leaders across the United States, recognizes the far-reaching repercussions of a pending Supreme Court case involving a New Jersey pregnancy center and the state attorney general.
The case, First Choice Women’s Resource Centers v. Platkin, could reshape how pregnancy centers and other nonprofits operate, particularly regarding free speech and privacy rights. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue a decision in June.
First Choice, a Care Net-affiliated group of pregnancy centers, is challenging an investigation it believes is unconstitutional. In 2023, Matthew Platkin, the New Jersey attorney general, served a subpoena demanding that the pregnancy center identify the people behind nearly 5,000 donations and produce up to 10 years of its internal, confidential documents.
“First Choice Pregnancy Center has worked for more than 30 years to transform the lives of women and men in New Jersey. Yet, the state’s attorney general has launched an unfounded investigation that threatens their constitutionally protected freedoms,” Roland Warren said.
“This threat to their rights is a threat to every pregnancy center, indeed, every faith-based organization in this nation. The government should not be allowed to weaponize its power against people of faith or nonprofits doing life-affirming work.”
Roland Warren made those comments on a webcast hosted by David Bereit, executive director of the Life Leadership Conference and founder of 40 Days for Life. The program, held on the eve of the Supreme Court hearing in December, featured many pro-life leaders.
First Choice Women’s Resource Centers v. Platkin will shape the future of pregnancy centers in America, Bereit said.
“What the court decides in this case will affect every center, every donor, every volunteer, and every woman and child who depends upon them.”
In December, Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) attorneys representing First Choice asked the Supreme Court to allow it to challenge in federal court an unconstitutional, predatory subpoena issued by Platkin, who demanded that the pregnancy center disclose the names, phone numbers, addresses, and places of employment of many of its donors, in addition to up to a decade of its internal documents. The Supreme Court will not rule on the validity of the subpoena itself but will decide whether First Choice has the right to challenge it in federal court rather than state court.
Previously, First Choice attempted to challenge the subpoena in federal court, but Platkin responded by filing a lawsuit. Multiple lower courts then ruled that First Choice must bring its federal claims before a state court first.
“New Jersey’s attorney general is targeting First Choice simply because of its pro-life views,” said ADF Senior Counsel Erin Hawley. “The Constitution protects First Choice and its donors from demands by a hostile state official to disclose donor identities and contact information, and First Choice is entitled to vindicate those rights in federal court.”
In January, Platkin resigned as attorney general after serving a four-year term. Over that period, New Jersey has proved to be one of the nation’s most hostile states for pro-life work. In addition to the current Supreme Court case, pregnancy centers face increasing legal pressure, including investigations and ongoing efforts by legislators that raise concerns about their ability to operate freely.
As the current case has moved forward, those broader tensions have come into sharper focus at the national level. Based on the oral arguments, pro-life advocates are optimistic about a favorable outcome when the Supreme Court renders its decision. According to SCOTUSblog, several justices voiced concern about the potential negative effect of Platkin’s subpoena on donor support and free speech.
On his webcast, Bereit commented that since Roe v. Wade was overturned, pregnancy centers have stepped up in extraordinary ways, serving more clients than ever before.
“Pregnancy centers truly have become the most trusted, most compassionate, and most effective life-affirming support network for mothers and babies anywhere in America,” he said. “That is exactly why they’re under fire right now.”
Roland Warren noted that, over the last 17 years, Care Net’s network has saved over 1.1 million babies from abortion and has shared the gospel with over 2.3 million women and men.
“Serving women, men, and families should never be punished,” he said. “That’s why we stand with First Choice and every pregnancy center in this nation. And that’s why this case is so important. The life-affirming work of thousands of pregnancy centers across this country is at stake.”