# **Mike Johnson Defended Clients Who Said Emergency Contraceptives “Cause Early Abortions”**
Mike Johnson represented clients who used inflammatory language about emergency contraceptives. These clients sought exemptions from having to provide or cover their use.
Mike Johnson represented a Louisiana nurse who said emergency contraceptives took human life, and believed she had been discriminated against when the family planning clinic she worked at directed her to administer the pills. Mike Johnson also represented a religious Louisiana College which refused to cover emergency contraceptives for employees as required under the Affordable Care Act. In that case, the plaintiff said emergency contraceptives “cause early abortions.”
## **Mike Johnson Lost A Case Arguing That The Morning-After Pill Took Human Life And That Nurses Should Not Be Required To Administer It**
### **Mike Johnson Was A Plaintiff’s Attorney In** ***Lemly V. St. Tammany Parish Hospital***
**Mike Johnson Was A Plaintiff’s Attorney In** ***Lemly V. St. Tammany Parish Hospital,*** **And He Was Working For The Alliance Defense Fund At The Time.**
\[Defendant’s Exhibit List, Toni S. Lemly v. St. Tammany Parish Hospital, United States District Court Eastern District of Louisiana, filed [_1/25/08_](https://ecf.laed.uscourts.gov/doc1/08512379998)\]
### **Alliance Defense Fund Sued In The Lemly Case Arguing That A Nurse Who Was Fired For Refusing To Give Patients The Morning-After Pill Had Been Discriminated Against**
**Alliance Defense Fund Sued In The Lemly Case Arguing That A Nurse Who Was Fired For Refusing To Give Patients The Morning-After Pill Had Been Discriminated Against.** According to Catholic Fire, “Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund have filed suit against St. Tammany Parish Hospital for terminating the employment of a nurse who refused to administer the ‘morning after’ abortion pill. The suit argues that the hospital’s actions violate the Louisiana Employment Discrimination Law. The nurse, Toni Lemly, had informed hospital supervisory staff that she objected to administering the ‘morning after’ abortion pill because of her sincerely held religious beliefs. St. Tammany Parish Hospital responded by firing her from her full-time position and reducing her to part-time status, working only three days a week. The demotion to part-time status caused a substantial reduction in her pay as well as loss of employee benefits.” \[Catholic Fire, [_6/28/05_](https://catholicfire.blogspot.com/2005/06/louisiana-nurse-fired-for-refusal-to.html)\]
**Lemly Had Refused To Give Morning After Pills In The Family Planning Clinic Where She Worked, Saying “For Me To Give Pills To Take A Life He \[God\] Creates Would Be For Me To Go Against Him And His Plan.”** According to the United States District Court Eastern District of Louisiana, “About three to four weeks before the Family Planning Clinic opened, plaintiff learned that on Thursdays and Fridays she would be required to counsel patients on the morning-after pill and distribute it to them. Plaintiff informed the Center that she could not perform these job duties because of her religious beliefs. On May 13, 2004, she sent the Director of the Center an email that stated: I have an innate, deep seeded belief in \[the\] Supreme Holy God and I am one of His children. I believe He teaches that life is precious and He is the Creator, Giver, and Taker of life. This is not left to man’s choice, and I cannot interfere with His plan. Since He is my Lord and Savior for me to give pills to take a life He creates would be for me to go against Him and His plan.” \[Order, Toni S. Lemly v. St. Tammany Parish Hospital, United States District Court Eastern District of Louisiana, filed [_7/30/08_](https://ecf.laed.uscourts.gov/doc1/08512690928)\]
#### **_Johnson: “Her Freedom In Choosing To Not Participate In The Taking Of A Human Life.”_**
**Johnson Gave A Statement Saying The Plaintiff Needed To Have “Her Freedom In Choosing To Not Participate In The Taking Of A Human Life.”** According to Catholic Fire, “‘St. Tammany Parish Hospital should have reversed its course and complied with the law. Had they done so, this lawsuit would not be necessary,’ Johnson said. ‘Ms. Lemly, a nurse of 23 years, loves her work, and she does not deserve to be discriminated against because of her religious beliefs. All that she asks of the hospital is to respect her freedom in choosing to not participate in the taking of a human life.’” \[Catholic Fire, [_6/28/05_](https://catholicfire.blogspot.com/2005/06/louisiana-nurse-fired-for-refusal-to.html)\]
### **Johnson Lost The Case**
**The United States District Court Granted Summary Judgment To The Defendants In** ***Lemly;*** **Johnson Lost The Case.** According to the United States District Court Eastern District of Louisiana, “For the foregoing reasons, the Court GRANTS defendant’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s contract claim and REMANDS this proceeding to the Twenty-Second Judicial District Court for the Parish of St. Tammany.” \[Order, Toni S. Lemly v. St. Tammany Parish Hospital, United States District Court Eastern District of Louisiana, filed [_7/30/08_](https://ecf.laed.uscourts.gov/doc1/08512690928)\]
## **Mike Johnson Represented A Plaintiff Who Argued Emergency Contraception Caused “Early Abortion”**
### **Mike Johnson Was A Plaintiff’s Attorney In** ***Louisiana College v. Sebelius et al.*****.**
**Mike Johnson Was A Plaintiff’s Attorney In** ***Louisiana College v. Sebelius et al.*****.**
\[Second Amended Complaint, Louisiana College v. Sebelius et al., United States District Court Western District of Louisiana Alexandria Division, filed [_9/19/13_](https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/field_document/09.19.13_amended_complaint.pdf)\]
### **Johnson’s Client Was Suing Because They Did Not Want To Provide Emergency Contraception To Employees As Required By The Affordable Care Act**
**Johnson’s Client Was Suing Because They Did Not Want To Provide Emergency Contraception To Employees As Required By The Affordable Care Act.** According to the United States District Court Western District Of Louisiana Alexandria Division, “This lawsuit challenges regulations issued by Defendants under the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that compel employee health insurance plans to provide free coverage of contraceptive services, including so-called ‘emergency contraceptives’ that cause early abortions.” \[Second Amended Complaint, Louisiana College v. Sebelius et al., United States District Court Western District of Louisiana Alexandria Division, filed [_9/19/13_](https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/field_document/09.19.13_amended_complaint.pdf)\]
**The Plaintiffs Complaint Alleged That Emergency Contraception “Cause Early Abortions.”** According to the United States District Court Western District Of Louisiana Alexandria Division, “This lawsuit challenges regulations issued by Defendants under the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that compel employee health insurance plans to provide free coverage of contraceptive services, including so-called ‘emergency contraceptives’ that cause early abortions.” \[Second Amended Complaint, Louisiana College v. Sebelius et al., United States District Court Western District of Louisiana Alexandria Division, filed [_9/19/13_](https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/field_document/09.19.13_amended_complaint.pdf)\]