Denton police investigating vandalism at pregnancy resource center

As reports continue about vandalism at churches and pregnancy resource centers across the nation, Denton police confirm an investigation is open after vandalism at the Loreto House, a center connected with the Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth. A Denton Police Department official said the criminal mischief case was assigned to a detective on Tuesday. Someone spray-painted graffiti on the exterior of the center, which provides free sonograms, parenting courses and other resources to women in the community. The spray paint said “not a clinic” and “forced birth is murder,” an apparent response to the leaked opinion from the U.S. Supreme Court last week. Over the weekend, abortion rights activists encouraged protesters to turn out to churches on Mother’s Day to protest the leak last week showing the nation’s highest court is poised to overturn Roe vs. Wade, its landmark 1973 decision that legalized abortion across the nation.

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas acknowledged the backlash at a judicial conference last weekend and said justices won’t “be bullied.” Activists have targeted the Catholic Church because many of its members are active in opposing abortion rights and demonstrating at abortion clinics. Pregnancy resource centers also have been targeted because critics say the facilities seek to stop women from choosing abortion and use deceptive tactics. A disclaimer on its website says, “Loreto House is not a medical clinic, and the staff cannot diagnose or treat medical conditions. We provide accurate information about abortion from sources such as Texas HHS and/or medical publications that contain proper citations.” It adds that the facility does not refer clients to abortion providers. The Denton center’s president, Randy Bollig, told The Dallas Morning News that the incident occurred at 3 a.m. on Sunday morning following an abortion rights protest. Bollig discovered the graffiti at 8 a.m. on Sunday morning. Bollig said the center expected an attack after the Supreme Court leak went public. “I had asked the Denton police a week earlier to increase patrols because we knew that they were going to attack us because we serve a lot of women, we are a pregnancy care center and they hate what we do,” Bollig said.