Attorneys for David Daleiden and the Center for Medical Progress are downplaying the narrow temporary restraining order issued against one of their undercover videos handed down by a superior court judge in Los Angeles Tuesday.
Katie Short of Life Legal Defense Fund told Breitbart News, “Nothing in the temporary restraining order prevents the Center for Medical Progress (CMP) from doing what it has been doing, on the schedule it planned to do it.”
Short says that on Monday StemExpress, the company that buys baby parts from Planned Parenthood abortion clinics, told CMP “they would be seeking a temporary restraining order and an order to show cause the following day.”
She says StemExpress requested relief to prevent the release of a video taken on May 22 between StemExpress CEO Cate Dyer and other StemExpress personnel, prohibit the dissemination of any documents that identify StemExpress, and to remove three documents form the CMP website. They also asked for expedited discovery along with the location and “possessor” of any copies of the video or documents.
StemExpress argued that the meeting with Daleiden was “confidential” and that BioMax, the fictitious company set up to sting StemExpress and Planned Parenthood, had signed a non-disclosure agreement, though that agreement was signed by BioMax four weeks after the taped meeting took place.
StemExpress also claims that Holly O’Donnell, the StemExpress whistleblower who appeared in the most recent video talking about the work she did picking over baby parts, signed a confidentiality agreement and that any documents she gave to CMP were covered under that agreement.
The judge granted a temporary restraining order on the May 22 video but granted nothing more to StemExpress. The Judge denied a temporary restraining order with regard to the documents or anything else.
The judge did allow expedited discovery, but, according to Short, he “emphasized that it was very limited. Basically they get to ask about the existence of a video or videos of that day.”
“The limited nature of the permitted discovery means [StemExpress] will not be able to use these depositions as a fishing expedition,” Short said.
The temporary restraining order on the May 22 video holds until a hearing on August 21.
David Daleiden issued the following statement:
StemExpress, a for-profit company partnered with over 30 abortion clinics, including Planned Parenthood, to harvest and sell aborted baby parts and provide a ‘financial benefit’ to Planned Parenthood clinics, is attempting to use meritless litigation to cover-up this illegal baby parts trade, suppress free speech, and silence the citizen press reporting on issues of burning concern to the American public.
They are not succeeding—their initial petition was rejected by the court, and their second petition was eviscerated to a narrow and contingent order about an alleged recording pending CMP’s opportunity to respond.
The Center for Medical Progress follows all applicable laws in the course of our investigative journalism work and will contest all attempts from Planned Parenthood and their allies to silence our First Amendment rights and suppress investigative journalism.
It seems likely that Planned Parenthood and the abortion after-market companies they do business with will make further legal claims against Daleiden and his group. Planned Parenthood has gone into war-room mentality, hiring a high-powered Washington, D.C. public relations firm, as they see the Daleiden tapes as a genuine threat to the $500 million they receive from the federal government each year, not to speak of corporate money and individual donations that may now be in trouble.
Hours of video are expected to drop in the coming days and weeks. On the Sean Hannity Show this week, Daleiden said up nine more are coming.
Follow Austin Ruse on Twitter @austinruse
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