Last month, BC Supreme Court Madam Justice Russell decided to dismiss the defamation lawsuit launched by two women\u2019s care centres against a pro-choice activist. In 2009, Joyce Arthur and her Pro-Choice Action Network released a publication titled, Exposing Crisis Pregnancy Centres in British Columbia<\/i>. The 65-page document asserted that crisis pregnancy centres (CPCs) were \u201cusing graphic videos and pictures to shock and horrify young women about abortion\u201d and that \u201cCPCs won\u2019t say up front they are religious, and will lie about being religiously-affiliated to get a woman into the centre\u201d.<\/p>\n
The Christian Advocacy Society of Greater Vancouver (I\u2019m not sure how much more up front about religious affiliation you can be) and the Crisis Pregnancy Centre of Vancouver Society filed a Notice of Civil Claim on October 12, 2012 alleging defamation against Ms. Arthur and the Pro-Choice Action Network on the basis that the above mentioned assertions, and other serious allegations, were false. One of the main purposes of these organizations is to provide care for women with unplanned pregnancies.<\/p>\n
The ruling is being viewed as a victory<\/span><\/a> for Ms. Arthur and undoubtedly she will continue to wage war against those who work toward minimizing the number of abortions in Canada. Indeed, only a few days after her victory, Ms. Arthur began calling for the British Columbia government to regulate CPCs. She is quoted in a Straight.com<\/span> <\/a>article stating that CPCs are \u201cscaring\u201d women and \u201chanding out misinformation\u201d.<\/p>\n Ms. Arthur\u2019s new media statements are contrary to her own lawyer\u2019s position in written and oral submissions to the court \u2013 accepted by the judge \u2013 that the CPCs defamation case<\/a> should be dismissed because the allegations in her report were NOT about BC CPCs<\/strong>.<\/p>\n