Lauren Handy, a pro-life activist who has gained respect for her work to bring attention to pro-life issues, has been sentenced to four years and nine months in prison for leading a protest at a Washington, D.C., abortion clinic in October 2020. 

Free Lauren Handy https://t.co/RCEvj1MbF5

— Baseball Aslan (@BaseballAslan) May 15, 2024

Handy, 30, was part of a group of protesters convicted of federal civil rights violations for the protest of the Washington Surgi-Clinic.

#Catholic activist Lauren Handy gets nearly five years in jail for leading a blockade of a #Washington #abortion clinic on Oct. 22, 2020.https://t.co/qMM55c3XPj

— UCA News (@UCANews) May 15, 2024

Federal prosecutors described Handy as an “active anti-abortion extremist” and the “criminal mastermind” behind the protest. They had sought a six-year sentence for Handy, who has been held in prison since her indictment in August.

During the 2020 protest, Handy and the other protesters linked themselves with locks and chains to block the doors of the facility. 

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly chided Handy for prioritizing her activism above the “needs” of women, saying, “Neither you nor any of the other co-conspirators showed any compassion empathy toward those two women needing medical care.”

Pro-Life Advocate Lauren Handy Thrown in Prison for 57 Months for Protesting Abortion https://t.co/InjmFDS7sq

— Don Storms (@DonStorms3) May 15, 2024

Handy’s attorneys from the Thomas More Society plan to appeal her conviction. In a pre-sentencing memo, they described Handy as a compassionate person who cares deeply “for the vulnerable communities” that she represents.