Thirteen activists were arrested Tuesday morning outside the Supreme Court, ahead of oral arguments in a case that could dramatically limit access to mifepristone in the U.S., a widely used abortion pill.
At approximately 8:45 a.m. EDT, U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) arrested 13 people who, a police spokesperson said in a statement, were “illegally blocking roads and then a walkway.”
The spokesperson added that USCP officers warned the group to stop “blocking the walkway or they would be arrested.”
“They refused, so our officers arrested them,” they said, citing crowding, obstructing, or incommoding.
The momentous Supreme Court case drew fierce demonstrations from both sides of the debate, as the nation’s highest court returned to the issue of reproductive rights nearly two years after its landmark decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, subsequently ending the federal right to an abortion.
Hundreds of people gathered outside the court, and supporters of abortion held signs reading “Bans off our body,” and “Abortion is our right.” Opponents held signs including “Abortion pills kill.”
