(LifeSiteNews) — Following his Tuesday sentencing in which he provided the courtroom with an articulate and moving defense of the sanctity of each and every human life from conception to natural death, Will Goodman told LifeSiteNews it is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for each person “which motivated our rescue mission” for the unborn.
Goodman, a member of the “D.C. Nine” peaceful pro-life rescuers, was sentenced to 27 months in prison and a $125 fine following conviction last year of blocking access to a late-term abortion facility in the nation’s capital.
On August 29, 2023, a D.C. jury found Goodman, Lauren Handy, John Hinshaw, Heather Idoni, and Rosemary “Herb” Geraghty guilty of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act and “conspiracy against rights.” The next month, Joan Andrews Bell, Jonathan Darnel, and Jean Marshall were convicted of the same; Paulette Harlow’s conviction came in November.
Since his conviction last year, Goodman and six of his fellow rescuers have been held in federal custody at the Alexandria Detention Center in Alexandria, Virginia.
In email correspondence Goodman explained how the sacrifice of Jesus Christ inspired him and his fellow rescuers to lay down their lives for the preborn who were in immediate danger of violent death, how their conviction was based on “malicious lies,” the grace of peace he felt upon his sentence being given, and how even the most powerful people are no match for the truth “which has always risen, and will rise from the dead.”
He also implored mercy and forgiveness for the prosecutors, and pro-abortion Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, recalling the words or Christ, “Forgive them Father. They know not what they do.”
The full interview is below.
LifeSiteNews: What was going through your mind when the judge issued your sentence?
Goodman: When being given my sentence, I felt at peace. I attribute this to God’s generous grace and the many wonderful prayers being offered up for us.
People from all around the country and from many different nations have been praying for this historic case. God’s people are simply amazing. Thank you all!
As I listened to the judge read her sentencing speech, the Lord’s words from the Gospel came to mind: “No greater love has a man than this – but to lay down his life for his friends.”
Jesus gave all for me and for each one of us.
I remembered that it was this kind of sacrificial Christ-like love which motivated our rescue mission. Now we are blessed with a special opportunity to continue to offer this small gift of laying down our lives for the innocent.
May the Lord grant us the grace to embrace a measure of further suffering for the sake of love and truth.
May Christ help all of us to “give and not count the cost” with an authentic selfless charity. Veni Sancte Spiritus!
My sentence is unjust, but it is absolutely nothing compared to the death penalty imposed upon our smallest sisters and brothers every day.
LSN: Could you please summarize the message you hoped to convey during your address to the court on Tuesday?
Goodman: My allocution did not exactly go as planned due to many questions and comments from the judge. Therefore, I stepped away from my prepared notes and sought to engage her in an honest dialogue about what our mission is most focused upon: helping women and saving preborn babies from being viciously killed.
The DOJ has unjustly alleged and subsequently convicted us of a series of deliberate, premeditated violent acts in the form of a very serious and unprecedented federal felony: conspiracy “against rights.”
This prosecution is predicated upon several grave and malicious lies. In conscience, I felt it necessary to answer these lies to the best of my ability and set the record straight.
Thus, my new hope in this dialogue style was to simply share with the court exactly what I witnessed at the rescue and what our team sought to do (and not do) and speak to a shared commitment to non-violence.
The truth is that it was the abortion mill which was shockingly violent, not us. These individuals physically attacked elderly pro-life women suffering from significant health problems and then afterwards, they violently murdered babies which were almost certainly beyond ex-utero viability.
Our people were surprised and shocked by the totally unexpected physical attack they endured when entering the waiting room. They did their best to survive the pummeling they endured.
I shared, as best as I could, that we rescuers are committed to non-violent direct action and civil disobedience. I sought to communicate to the court that my fellow rescuers are among the most loving, compassionate, and peaceful people that I know. I am honored to know each and every one of them.
But, the most important words of my long sentencing allocution/dialogue were not my words. Rather, they were the words from Sacred Scripture, the Word of God.
To explain the rescuer’s primary motivation, I read the story of the Visitation from St. Luke’s Gospel.
The Blessed Mother who is pregnant with Jesus Christ shares His love with her cousin Elizabeth who is herself pregnant with St. John the Baptist. Joy and love permeate this sacred encounter.
As rescuers, we deeply desire to share Christ’s love with mothers and the precious babes in their wombs. Selfless service offered with charity bring life and joy by the power of God.
I’m honored to have been able to read this beautiful story of Jesus in the womb of His holy Mother while in the federal courthouse in our nation’s capital.
LSN: Are there any other thoughts you would like to share with our readers?
Goodman: Yes, for one, I would like to offer the following quote which has inspired me and others:
You have the power in your hands, but we have the truth. Whomever has power in their hands thinks they can suppress the truth, kill it, or crucify it. But the truth has always risen and will rise from the dead.
Silvos Krcmery, a persecuted Catholic layman, delivered these words to the communist judge at his own sentencing in Czechoslovakia in 1954. He spent 17 years in a brutal detention camp. But in time, the communist regime came to an end – thanks to brave sacrifices like his.
The DOJ is trying to suppress the truth about the sacredness of human life but their efforts will ultimately be in vain. The truth cannot be defeated.
The DOJ is trying to kill rescue. They are using lies and draconian punishment to this end.
But rescue is not dead. It is rising. I’m confident that one Rescuer will keep rescuing and never be deterred. He will continue to save helpless babies from destruction, save moms and dads from despair or irresponsibility, and save sinners working in the abortion industry.
This is my Rescuer: Jesus Christ! And at His name every knee shall bend, and every head shall bow! Including those in our Justice Department.
From now until He returns in glory, He will call other rescuers to join Him in His sacred mission. To them He beckons: “Be not afraid.”
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