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Abortion protest is scaled back
Aurora rally OK near clinic, limited in residential area
Abortion protesters who plan to rally Saturday against a proposed Planned Parenthood clinic in Aurora may not conduct an hourslong march down residential streets, a federal judge ruled Friday.
Officials of the Pro-Life Action League argued in court that an Aurora ordinance that bars demonstrations across from residential houses violated their right to free speech.
U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall disagreed, saying city officials had a right to protect residents' "quiet enjoyment" of their homes. The law put only a minimal burden on free speech, she held.
Under the ordinance, protesters may still gather outside the clinic, march in commercial areas and make one brief march through the residential areas, Kendall ruled.
Pro-Life Action League officials had planned to make what they called a "Jericho Walk" seven times around a large block that contains the clinic and residential houses, with each lap taking about 45 minutes.
Eric Scheidler, the league's communications director, said Friday after the hearing that protesters would follow the ruling.
"We will march our one circuit through the neighborhood and then we'll stand and pray together that Planned Parenthood will never open in Aurora," Scheidler said.
Scheidler said he hopes the march will draw more than 1,000 protesters. Aurora officials sought a court injunction Friday after residents expressed concerns about plans for a massive march, but city officials said they were satisfied by the judge's ruling.
"We feel this is a good result," said Alayne Weingartz, the city's corporation counsel.
In a lawsuit filed Thursday, Planned Parenthood is seeking a court order that would allow it to open the clinic Tuesday as scheduled.
U.S. District Judge Charles Norgle could decide that suit as soon as Monday.
Steve Trombley, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood/Chicago Area, has said the lawsuit was necessary because the city reneged on plans to let the clinic open next week.
Aurora officials want to delay the opening while they investigate whether Planned Parenthood's developer, Gemini Office Development LLC, fully disclosed the purpose of the clinic during the permitting process.
Planned Parenthood officials have said 13 appointments are scheduled for Tuesday at the $7.5 million, 22,000-square-foot medical facility on Aurora's east side. The clinic, one of the group's largest in the country, will offer reproductive health-care services, including abortions.
mjhiggins@tribune.com
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