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Pro-lifers call the win “a huge victory for all Americans who want our right to speak our minds peacefully in a law-abiding way without fear of our own government.”
Defense lawyers for Houck could not comment on the reason for the replacement.
Facing 11 years in prison, Houck was acquitted by a jury after only an hour of deliberation.
The judge sent the jury home with instructions to return to court and resume their deliberations Monday morning.
Houck said that numerous people — including the Missionaries of Charity — have assured him of their prayers since his arrest.
Opening statements begin Wednesday, but about 50 supporters gathered in front of the federal courthouse in Philadelphia on Tuesday to rally for Houck’s acquittal. Others joined Houck and his wife at Eucharistic adoration on Monday.
The more than 30-page motion alleges that the government violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment in its prosecution of Houck.
The defense argued Thursday that Love was saying degrading things to Houck’s son during the exchange, an accusation that Love denies.
In a video posted on YouTube Oct. 12, the cardinal is seen on the front porch of the Houck family home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where the 48-year-old had been taken into custody.
Mark Houck, the founder and co-president of The King’s Men, a men's ministry, faces federal assault charges stemming from an altercation with a Planned Parenthood escort outside a Philadelphia abortion facility nearly a year ago.
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