President Trump Pardons 23 Pro-Life Activists, Including 76-Year-Old Woman Freed from Prison
When Joan Bell, 76, received news that she was one of 23 pro-life activists pardoned by President Trump, she was in disbelief. Bell, a grandmother of eight, had been sentenced to more than two years in prison in November 2023 for participating in a blockade at a Washington D.C. abortion clinic in October 2020. Despite her disbelief, Bell said it was “overwhelmingly beautiful” to finally be freed after being told the news by Laura Ingraham’s show.
Bell’s husband, Christopher Bell, shared the news on Fox News, and soon afterward, a guard told her to pack her belongings for release that evening. The couple was eventually reunited and shared a joyful reunion, with Joan describing it as “glorious” and a “second honeymoon” to soon follow.
President Trump pardoned the 23 pro-life activists, saying that they “should not have been prosecuted” and that it was a “great honor” to sign the pardons. Trump also took issue with the elderly age of some of the pardoned activists, saying that it was unfair that they were “treated so shamefully” by the Justice Department.
Joan Bell expressed gratitude to Trump for the pardon and said that it was “tough” being prosecuted for her religious beliefs. She also accused the judge in her trial of being pro-choice and said it was heartbreaking to be silenced during the trial for speaking out in favor of her pro-life stance.
The Thomas More Society, which represented many of the pro-life activists, praised Trump’s decision, stating that it allowed the activists to return home to their families and enjoy the freedom that should never have been taken from them.
The pardoning of the 23 pro-life activists is one of several high-profile pardons issued by President Trump, who also pardoned over 1,000 Jan. 6 rioters this week.
