(Washington, D.C. – July 28, 2025) – Today, we filed a petition for writ of certiorari, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to take up our case filed against Letitia James, the New York Attorney General, on behalf of two pro-life members of Red Rose Rescue.
During a press conference convened by the New York Attorney General on June 8, 2023 to announce the filing of a civil lawsuit against Red Rose Rescue, a pro-life organization, and several of its members, the Attorney General declared that the organization was a “terrorist group” and that those associated with the organization were “terrorists.” There were no allegations of terrorism in the civil lawsuit, and neither Red Rose Rescue nor anyone associated with the organization has ever been charged with the crime of terrorism nor any other violent felony.
The Attorney General’s appellation was designed to malign Red Rose Rescue and its associates in the eyes of the public and to reduce the effectiveness of their First Amendment activities.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit dismissed our lawsuit, holding that the pro-lifers lacked standing to advance their constitutional claims and that the Attorney General’s statements that Red Rose Rescue is a “terrorist group” and those who associate with this pro-life group are “terrorists” were opinion and not defamatory statements of fact.
The petition presents two questions for the High Court’s consideration:
- Do Petitioners, who are members of Red Rose Rescue, have standing to advance their constitutional challenge to the actions of the Attorney General when they have alleged a chilling effect on their First Amendment rights and reputational harm?
- Are the Attorney General’s “terrorist” and “terrorist group” designations opinion protected by the First Amendment and thus immune from New York’s defamation law?