<p>California on Monday agreed to finally end the prosecution of Center for Medical Progress journalists David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt, who released videos of Planned Parenthood officials discussing the sale of aborted baby parts and organs, which is illegal.</p>
<p>The controversial prosecution of Daleiden and Merritt was sparked by then-California Attorney General Kamala Harris, who was <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/08/02/us-news/kamala-harris-accused-of-weaponizing-calif-ags-office-against-activist/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accused</a> of weaponizing her office to bolster a &#8220;mega-sponsor&#8221; in Planned Parenthood. The journalists were formally charged under Harris&#8217; successor with 15 felony counts for videotaping “confidential” communications.</p>
<p>&#8220;The agreement—a negotiated settlement with zero punishment—is in exchange for a new &#8216;no contest&#8217; plea by Daleiden and Merritt on a single video recording charge. It involves no jail time, no fines, no admission of wrongdoing, and no probation,&#8221; a <a href="https://www.centerformedicalprogress.org/2025/01/breaking-state-of-california-agrees-to-end-unprecedented-prosecution-of-cmps-undercover-video-reporting/">press release</a> from CMP says. &#8220;The new &#8216;no contest&#8217; plea—which cannot be used adversely—will be entered into judgment as a misdemeanor in 6 to 12 months, and then converted to a &#8216;not guilty&#8217; plea, dismissed, and expunged.&#8221;</p>
<p>A <a href="https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-secures-felony-conviction-david-daleiden-and-sandra">press release</a> from California Attorney General Rob Bonta seemed to celebrate the plea deal.  The AG&#8217;s office said that Daleiden and Merritt were convicted &#8220;for criminally recording confidential communications with women’s healthcare providers.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;Previously, in 2017, the California Department of Justice <a title="https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-xavier-becerra-announces-charges-filed-against-david-robert" href="https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-xavier-becerra-announces-charges-filed-against-david-robert">announced</a> the filing of an arrest warrant against Daleiden and Merritt,&#8221; the press release said. &#8220;[T]hey each pleaded no contest to, and were found guilty of, one felony count of California Penal Code Section 632(a) (unlawful recording of confidential communication).&#8221;</p>
<p>“While the Trump Administration is issuing pardons to individuals convicted of harming reproductive health clinics and providers, my office is securing criminal convictions to ensure that Californians can exercise their constitutional rights to reproductive healthcare,” Bonta said. “We will not hesitate to continue taking action against those who threaten access to abortion care — whether by recording confidential conversations or other means.”</p>
<p>Daleiden, who&#8217;s the president of CMP, called the end of the prosecution a &#8220;huge victory.&#8221;</p>
<p>“After enduring nine years of weaponized political prosecution, putting an end to the lawfare launched by Kamala Harris is a huge victory for my investigative reporting and for the public’s right to know the truth about Planned Parenthood’s sale of aborted baby body parts,&#8221; Daleiden said.</p>
<p>&#8220;Now we all must get to work to protect families and infants from the criminal abortion-industrial complex,” he added. “Taking the San Francisco case off the board allows me to focus fully on CMP’s mission to report on the injustices of taxpayer-funded experiments on aborted babies and continue to expand our groundbreaking investigative reporting.”</p>
<p>CMP noted that the undercover videos involved in the case sparked a massive <a href="https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-fetal-tissue-20171209-story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$7.8 million settlement</a> from two bioscience companies that admitted to illegally selling aborted fetuses from Planned Parenthood in Southern California. Their footage was also the subject of a &#8220;settlement with <a href="https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2017/01/24/arizona-ends-investigation-into-abortion-doctor-fetal-tissue-collections/96998988/">disgorgement</a> of profits from the sale of aborted fetal organs in Arizona, and the <a href="https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/ag-paxton-fifth-circuit-upholds-decision-defund-planned-parenthood">disqualification</a> of Planned Parenthood from state and federal funding in Texas for violations of medical standards and ethics documented on the undercover footage—where Planned Parenthood <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/planned-parenthood-must-face-trial-over-texas-medicaid-fraud-claims-2023-10-24/">now</a> faces a nearly $2 billion federal False Claims Act case from the disqualification.&#8221;</p>
<p><strong>Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hurricane-kamala-activist-remembers-harrowing-raid-ordered-by-harris-over-planned-parenthood-videos" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘Hurricane Kamala’: Activist Remembers ‘Harrowing’ Raid Ordered By Harris Over Planned Parenthood Videos</a></strong></p>

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California Finally Ends Prosecution Of Journo Who Exposed Planned Parenthood With Damning Videos