Buckeye Reporter

The Buckeye Institute has filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, urging it to block a subpoena issued by the New Jersey attorney general that demands donor information from First Choice Women’s Resource Centers.

David C. Tryon, director of litigation at The Buckeye Institute, commented on the action: “New Jersey’s attorney general is using his power as the state’s highest law-enforcement official to take actions that will silence speech,” said Tryon. “The issuance of the subpoena alone severely chills free speech and weaponizes the civil litigation process against organizations with whom New Jersey disagrees.”

The subpoena in question requires First Choice Women’s Resource Centers to disclose its donors and produce up to 10 years of confidential internal documents, despite there being no substantive evidence of wrongdoing. In its brief, The Buckeye Institute stated: “the issuance of this subpoena—even if it is ultimately quashed—severely chills First Amendment rights because individuals will now fear that their charitable contributions to organizations engaged in controversial issues will be subjected to government scrutiny and possible, if not likely, retaliation.”

Alliance Defending Freedom represents First Choice Women’s Resource Centers in this matter.