Baltimore, MD – Tom Brejcha, President and Chief Counsel of Thomas More Society, issued a blistering statement today condemning the disgraceful sentencing of Patrick Brice, who was handed a sentence of zero jail time and a mere year of home detention after his conviction on two counts of second-degree assault for brutally assaulting two elderly pro-life men as they peacefully prayed and counseled outside a Planned Parenthood in Baltimore.

“This was not a minor altercation between two parties with differing views on abortion. It was a vicious, targeted assault on two senior citizens whose only ‘offense’ was praying for expectant mothers and offering life-affirming alternatives to abortion,” reacted Brejcha. “One of the victims was knocked unconscious. The other suffered broken facial bones and a lifelong eye impairment. This was an act of cowardice and cruelty, and sheer mayhem. This crime deserves far more serious consequences than a ‘get out of jail free’ card and a one-year home detention that amounts to nothing more than a slap on the wrist.”

Brice was captured on surveillance video winding back his leg and aiming a direct, forceful kick squarely at his second victim’s head, fracturing his orbital bone. He was convicted of two counts of second-degree assault and two counts of reckless endangerment after having dodged conviction on the first-degree assault charge. Brice, who was 28 at the time of the attack on then-73-year-old Mark Crosby and 84-year-old Richard Schaefer, faced up to 30 years in prison.

“When our justice system fails to hold perpetrators like Brice fully accountable, it sends a dangerous message that pro-lifers can be attacked with impunity. This not only jeopardizes the safety of peaceful demonstrators, but it undermines the rule of law and the right to free speech,” Brejcha continued.

Thomas More Society has defended the rights of pro-life sidewalk counselors and demonstrators for decades and retained Terrell Roberts III as victim’s advocate attorney to help Crosby, one of the two elderly pro-life sidewalk counselors assaulted in this incident.

“No one should fear being beaten on the sidewalk for simply standing up for the most vulnerable among us,” Brejcha concluded. “Violence must never be tolerated, excused, or minimized, especially when it’s politically motivated. Justice was not served in this case, and we must continue to fight until all peaceful pro-life voices are protected.”