PRINSBURG, Minn. – Now it’s known who was behind a scheme to pay Prinsburg people to file lawsuits against abortion providers. It was outgoing state legislator Tim Miller, a Republican from Prinsburg. Miller was trying to impress bis new bosses at Pro-Life Action Ministries of St. Paul. Miller’s plan fell apart in early December when the Prinsburg Town Board bowed to pressure from state Attorney General Keith Ellison. The attorney general promised to take the town to court for civil rights intimidation if the anti-abortion proposal were adopted. In April when Miller announced he wouldn’t seek re-election, he hinted at his relationship with the anti-abortion group Pro-Life Action Ministries. But how the proposed Pro-Life Action Ministries’ proposed ordinance ever landed on the agenda of the Prinsburg Town Board was cloudy from the start. In the end, the Town Board, under pressure from the Attorney General Elison, killed the proposal unanimously. Nobody wanted to claim sponsorship.
Authorship
No lawyer lives in Prinsburg, population 500. And ironically there is no abortij-provider in town. Also, plainly nobody on the four-person Prinsburg Town Bosrd authored the proposed ordinance – eight pages of skillfully crafted legalese in tiny type. The proposal was a carbon copy of one adopted by several small Texas towns and thought to be intended as sleepers for future anti-abortion cases to the U.S. Supreme Court. Pro-Life Action Ministries of St. Paul is in a network of organization that lobby against pregnancy termination on many fronts, including legislation. The Prinsburg ordinance could well have slipped under the radar were it not for news coverage that began with Tom Cherveny of the Willmar West Central Tribune. Mayor Roger Ahrenholz said the whole town was surprised to be “thrust into the spotlight” by the eventual national media coverage.
Next?
In an interview with Cherveny, Miller said he was disappointed to have lost his bid for Prinsburg to adopt the ordinance. . He vowed to work with other communities for similar ordinances. Perhaps even Prinsburg might reconsider, he said. Mille racknowledged that the proposed Prinsbrg ordinance was drafted by attorney Jonathan Mitchell with the Thomas Moore Society, a Chicago-based pro-life organization affiliated loosely with Pro-Life Action Ministries of St. Paul. Miller said Mitchell and the Thomas Moore Society had offered to assist Prinsburg in defending any legal challenges. Miller said that Ellison was wrong about that the ordinance never surviving a legal challenge. The town’s legal counsel at the state small cities association also had cautioned that the ordinance would be hard to defend, as well as costly.
Earlier: Tiny Minnesota town a pawn in abortion war?
Miller. Served four terms from State District 17-A. Former giftshop owner. Age 57.
Verbatim
Miller, announcing his decision in April against seeking a fifth term: “Pro-life work has been the most important part of my time in government. As such, I am thrilled to announce that I will be focusing all my efforts on defending the unborn with a new initiative I will be discussing soon. Protecting the unborn is one of the most consequential missions of our time, and I am eager to continue the fight.”