Bevelyn Beatty Williams, a 33-year-old pro-life activist, has been sentenced to three years and five months in prison by a Manhattan federal court.
She was convicted of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act for protesting outside an abortion clinic in New York City.
According to a statement from the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Christian activist was convicted of “interference, including by threats and force, with individuals seeking to obtain and provide” abortions during the early days of the pandemic in 2020.
The Tennessee wife and mother was sentenced for preaching the Gospel outside an NYC abortion clinic, where she allegedly injured a clinic worker’s hand and blocked the entrance.
“I was persecuted as a Christian standing for my beliefs when it comes to life,” according to a statement from Williams on her fundraising page. “This is devastating news. Not only is this bond extensive for the accused crime, but she made it very clear in the courtroom that she was going to make an example out of me.”
The DOJ statement revealed that Williams leaned against the abortion clinic door, preventing a clinic worker from entering and trapping another worker’s hand inside the door.
The DOJ noted according to a live stream on social media posted by Williams, she “stood within inches of the Health Center’s chief administrative officer and threatened to ‘terrorize this place’ and warned that ‘we’re gonna terrorize you so good, your business is gonna be over mama.’”
Williams, who has a two-year-old daughter, plans to appeal the decision.
To support her appeal, she has launched a GiveSendGo fundraiser aiming to raise $250,000 for her ‘fight for freedom,’ and has noted that she has 60 days to file her appeal.
She has already raised $69,000 toward her $250,000 goal.
Williams maintains “I was persecuted as a Christian standing for my beliefs when it comes to life.”
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