A federal judge openly mocked a 75-year-old grandmother’s faith in the courtroom during a sentencing hearing. Paulette Harlow faces two years in jail for praying at an abortion mill.
Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly handed down the sentence, along with 36 months of supervised release, because of her part in a prayer and hymn sing at a notorious late-term abortion mill in Washington, D.C.
Harlow had been under house arrest since November 2023 because of her rapidly declining health.
Harlow’s husband pleaded with the court for mercy because of his wife’s declining health and feared that she might die in prison.
“In my heart, I think she’s having a hard time staying alive,” John said, according to LiveAction. “We’ve tried to be good people,” he later added. “I love my wife dearly… We’re throwing ourselves on the mercy of the court.”
Judge Kollar-Kotelly dismissed his concerns and mocked Harlow’s faith in Christ.
The judge quipped that she hoped Harlow would “make an effort to remain alive” because that is a “tenet of [Harlow’s] religion.”
In November 2023, Paulette was convicted of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act and of “conspiracy against civil rights.”
Sen. Mike Lee condemned the federal judge’s callous remarks.
“This judged mocked Harlow’s religious beliefs while sentencing the 75-year-old woman in poor health to two years in prison — all for the offense of (gasp) praying at an abortion clinic,” Lee wrote on X. “Moloch is a vile monster.”
In May 2024, Paulette’s eight co-defendants were also sentenced to various lengths of time in prison followed by supervised release. On May 14, Harlow’s co-defendant Lauren Handy was sentenced to almost five years in prison.
Paulette has remained under house arrest since November 2023 due to her medical needs.
In her statement for the government, prosecutor Rebecca Ross insisted the case was “not about the defendant’s beliefs,” but rather about “violent obstruction of reproductive healthcare” and “violating the civil rights of others.”
Ross accused Harlow of attempting to use her poor health as an “excuse” to “escape the consequences” of her actions and of lying under oath at her trial, though exactly how Harlow allegedly did the latter was not made clear.
The attorney claimed that Harlow “denied empathy and compassion” to women attempting to abort their children on the day of the rescue, and recommended a sentence of 33-41 months.