The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a challenge to laws in Pittsburgh requiring free speech "buffer zones" around abortion clinics.
The laws, which require that anti-abortion demonstrators leave a 15-foot space between themselves and abortion clinics, faced scrutiny in 2019. At that time, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals held that protests are not allowed in these zones, but one-on-one "sidewalk counseling" is permissible.
Anti-abortion groups appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, receiving support from a coalition of Republican senators and congressmen. They argued that the buffer zones violated their First Amendment right to free speech.
Justice Clarence Thomas commented on the court's decision to turn away the case, saying that, while he agreed with his fellow justices, he hoped that the court would soon weigh in on the issue.
"These zones often impose serious limits on free speech," Thomas wrote, referencing Hill v. Colorado, a past case where the court upheld free speech buffer zones.
Thomas, however, noted that the line of argument in Hill conflicted with more recent court decisions on the curtailment of free speech and that the court should revisit the issue.
"I agree with the Court’s decision not to take up this case because it involves unclear, preliminary questions about the proper interpretation of state law," Thomas concluded. "But the Court should take up this issue in an appropriate case to resolve the glaring tension in our precedents."
