No suspects have been identified in the early Saturday morning arson at Life Choices, a “Christ-centered” ministry that offers free services related to pregnancy and sexual health, Longmont’s Police Chief for Police Services said Monday.
Jeff Satur told a small group of reporters that several people have been questioned about the blaze at the ministry, located at 20 Mountain View Ave. ,that was reported at 3:17 a.m. Saturday. Investigators were told by people they heard loud booms about 2 a.m. that appears to have come from that area but no one reported the noise to police dispatchers, he said.
Satur said the first floor of the ministry was heavily damaged by fire, although the exact cause of the blaze had yet to be determined. Investigators found two messages spray-painted at the front of the building. One painted on the front doorway said, “if abortions aren’t safe neither are you,” while the other found on the front porch said, “bans off our bodies.”
The messages appeared to have been written by two different people, as one was written in cursive and the other was printed, Satur said.
Similar messages were also found in clinics in other parts of the country. They have been linked to Jane’s Revenge, a militant pro-abortion group that formed shortly after May 2 when a draft version of a majority opinion from the Supreme Court indicated the justices would overturn Roe vs. Wade, according to Newsweek.
On Friday, the Supreme Court overturned the 50-year-old federal law that allowed abortions across the United States.
Satur said Monday that “it’s not lost on us that Roe vs. Wade” could have influenced the attack. Satur added there was no indication that Jane’s Revenge was responsible for the arson at Life Choices.
Jane’s Revenge, through its blog https://janesrevenge.noblogs.org/, has encouraged people to loudly protest the Supreme Court’s decision. “Everyone with the urge to paint, to burn, to cut, to jam, now is the time,” the blog states.
Besides local law enforcement, the FBI’s evidence response team and a dog specially trained in arson cases have been brought in to help, he said. Investigators also have collected some videos of the area.
“This is a top priority for our department,” Satur said. “This is a very serious crime. This is bad for our city and bad for everybody.”
Life Choices has been in Longmont for 38 years and does a lot of good for the community, he said.
“This is senseless,” Satur added.
Investigators request that those living between Collyer Street and Lashley Street (west and east) and 15th Avenue and 11th Avenue (north and south) check their surveillance video for any activity in the area between 2:45 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. Area residents and businesses can upload a video to Longmont Police Services at: https://LongmontPD.evidence.com/axon/citizen/public/225219
Public Safety also requests that anyone who can assist in identifying the individual(s) responsible please call (303)774-3700 and reference Longmont Police Report #22-5219.
