On Oct. 22, 2020, a group of anti-abortion extremists hailing from six different states and armed with a chain and rope forcefully pushed through the doors of the Washington Surgi-Clinic, a reproductive healthcare facility in Washington, D.C. Using furniture, they barricaded the door to the treatment area and chained themselves to each other in order to shut down clinic operations; they also injured a nurse during the course of the invasion while terrorizing staff and patients for well over an hour.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced last week criminal indictments against the nine anti-abortion extremists associated with this obstruction and violent invasion, charging them with violating the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act.