Florida Preborn Rescue v. City of Clearwater

In Clearwater, Florida, anti-free speech 'bubble zones' had severely restricted the ability of pro-life sidewalk counselors to connect with abortion-minded women outside the city's abortion facility. In March 2023, Clearwater passed an ordinance creating a vehicle safety zone that prohibited entry into the clinic's driveway and the five feet of public sidewalk on either side of it—a roughly 38-foot stretch—during business hours, preventing pro-life ministry Florida Preborn Rescue from distributing pamphlets about abortion alternatives to women arriving by car. Violations carried a civil fine, and persistent violators faced arrest.

Thomas More Society filed suit on May 26, 2023, and sought a preliminary injunction in federal court. After the district court denied the motion in October 2023, Thomas More Society appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. On December 4, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit reversed, finding that the ordinance was likely facially unconstitutional and that municipalities cannot prioritize 'safe access' to an abortion facility at the expense of free speech on a public sidewalk.

On March 12, 2026, a federal judge entered a permanent injunction blocking the City of Clearwater from ever enforcing the ordinance again. Thomas More Society is also authorized to seek attorneys' fees and costs from the city under federal civil rights law.

Sidewalk counselors are often the last line of defense between a child and the abortionist, bringing hope to a mother who might otherwise believe she has no option besides abortion. Thomas More Society remains committed to bursting 'bubble zones' in Florida and throughout the country, because preborn lives are on the line and the abortion industry benefits when women aren't offered the life-affirming resources and support they need.