David Daleiden is the anti-abortion activist and founder of the Center for Medical Progress who released a series of undercover videos in 2015 accusing Planned Parenthood of illegally selling fetal tissue. The videos set off congressional inquiries and a decade of litigation against him. He was never able to prove the sales allegation in court, and no charges were ever filed against Planned Parenthood. He was, however, held civilly liable for roughly $2.4 million in damages and nearly $13.8 million in attorneys’ fees, and he pleaded no contest to a single California felony that a San Francisco judge expunged on April 1, 2026.
Who He Is and How the Project Started
Daleiden attended Claremont McKenna College, where he studied government and wrote his undergraduate thesis on fetal personhood in American jurisprudence. He joined an anti-abortion group in high school and later served as director of research for Live Action while still in college.1Time. Planned Parenthood Videos David Daleiden In 2010, after learning of an earlier ABC 20/20 undercover investigation into fetal trafficking, he began researching the fetal tissue industry and came to believe abortion providers were selling tissue in violation of federal and state law.2Supreme Court of the United States. NAF v. CMP Cert Petition
He founded the Center for Medical Progress in 2013 and recruited Troy Newman of Operation Rescue and veteran activist Albin Rhomberg to help run it.3Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Planned Parenthood v. Center for Medical Progress The group created a shell company, BioMax Procurement Services, LLC, that posed as a fetal tissue buyer. The 30-month operation, which Daleiden called the “Human Capital Project,” cost roughly $120,000.1Time. Planned Parenthood Videos David Daleiden
The 2015 Videos
Between October 2013 and July 2015, Daleiden and colleague Sandra Merritt used the BioMax cover to secretly record Planned Parenthood and StemExpress staff on 14 occasions.4BBC. Planned Parenthood Activists Charged They also signed confidentiality agreements under false identities to attend the National Abortion Federation’s annual meetings in 2014 and 2015.2Supreme Court of the United States. NAF v. CMP Cert Petition
In July 2015, the Center for Medical Progress began releasing edited videos online. The first showed Dr. Deborah Nucatola, Planned Parenthood’s senior director of medical services, discussing fetal tissue procurement over lunch and mentioning that clinics received $30 to $100 per specimen to cover donation costs.5NPR. Undercover Video Targets Planned Parenthood Federal law bars commercial sale of fetal tissue but allows donation with consent and reimbursement of actual costs like transportation and processing. Daleiden argued the videos proved illegal sales.
Planned Parenthood denied the allegations. Spokesperson Eric Ferrero said tissue donation was conducted with “full, appropriate consent” and that any payments covered only actual costs.5NPR. Undercover Video Targets Planned Parenthood A forensic analysis the organization commissioned from Fusion GPS found “significant distortions and misleading edits” in the released footage.6NPR. Planned Parenthood Says Experts Found Misleading Edits in Videos Daleiden countered that the missing portions were bathroom breaks.
Multiple congressional committees and at least thirteen states investigated. None produced charges against Planned Parenthood or the tissue procurement companies.7U.S. Congress. Select Panel Minority Report A Texas grand jury convened to investigate Planned Parenthood instead cleared the organization and indicted Daleiden and Merritt.8Vox. Planned Parenthood Videos Indicted Daleiden
The Texas Indictment
In January 2016, a Harris County grand jury charged Daleiden and Merritt with felony tampering with a governmental record for using fake driver’s licenses during the undercover operation. Daleiden also faced a misdemeanor charge tied to the attempted purchase of human organs.8Vox. Planned Parenthood Videos Indicted Daleiden The misdemeanor was dropped in June 2016. District Judge Brock Thomas dismissed the felony charges on July 26, 2016, after prosecutors concluded the grand jury had lacked jurisdiction because the charges were brought during an improper extension of its term.9New York Times. Last Charges Dropped Against Abortion Opponents in Planned Parenthood Case
The California Criminal Case
California pursued Daleiden far longer. Then-Attorney General Kamala Harris opened an investigation into his recording methods, and in April 2016 state agents searched his Huntington Beach apartment, seizing computers, hard drives, and fake identification cards.10Los Angeles Times. Kamala Harris Planned Parenthood After Harris left for the U.S. Senate, her successor, Xavier Becerra, filed charges. Daleiden and Merritt were each charged with 15 felonies under California’s eavesdropping statutes: one conspiracy count and one count for each of the 14 people secretly recorded.11Courthouse News Service. Anti-Abortion Videotaper David Daleiden Charged 15 Felonies
Daleiden accused Harris of political motivation, pointing to a “defend Planned Parenthood” petition on her Senate campaign site during the investigation.10Los Angeles Times. Kamala Harris Planned Parenthood He said he was the first person ever prosecuted by the attorney general’s office for undercover recording.12Politico. Harris Abortion Republicans In 2020, he sued Harris and Becerra in federal court, alleging they had conspired to violate his civil rights for political reasons.13Washington Examiner. Anti-Abortion Activist Sues Kamala Harris
The case lasted nearly eight years. On January 27, 2025, Daleiden and Merritt each pleaded no contest in San Francisco Superior Court to a single felony count of unlawful recording of confidential communications under California Penal Code Section 632(a).14California Attorney General. Attorney General Bonta Secures Felony Conviction The remaining charges were dismissed. The deal required no jail time, no fines, and no admissions of wrongdoing, but the defendants had to obey all laws, refrain from further unlawful recordings, stay away from the people they had recorded, and waive appeal rights.15CalMatters. David Daleiden Planned Parenthood Videos They could petition to reduce the felony to a misdemeanor after 12 months.
On April 1, 2026, San Francisco County Judge Brian Ferrall dropped the final charge and expunged the case. He declined a request from abortion-rights groups and recording subjects to give victim impact statements before dismissal.16World. California Drops Last Charge Against Pro-Life Activist David Daleiden Daleiden described the outcome as “zero punishment.”17CapRadio. Activists Whose Videos Accused Planned Parenthood of Selling Fetal Remains Plead to Felony
The Planned Parenthood Civil Judgment
The criminal outcome was mild. The civil outcome was not. Planned Parenthood sued Daleiden, Merritt, Newman, Rhomberg, and the Center for Medical Progress in the Northern District of California before Judge William Orrick III. After a six-week trial, a federal jury on November 15, 2019, found the defendants liable on every count: fraud, trespass, breach of contract, conspiracy, unlawful and fraudulent business practices, civil racketeering under the federal RICO statute, and federal and state wiretapping violations. The jury rejected the argument that they were protected as undercover journalists.18San Francisco Chronicle. Planned Parenthood Wins Verdict
The jury awarded about $478,000 in compensatory damages for security and vetting costs and $870,000 in punitive damages. Because RICO trebles compensatory damages, the total came to roughly $2.4 million.19Courthouse News Service. Jury Finds Abortion Foes Harmed Planned Parenthood Awards $870K The district court added nearly $13.8 million in attorneys’ fees and costs.20Bloomberg Law. Planned Parenthood Keeps $14 Million in Attorney Fees on Appeal
A unanimous Ninth Circuit panel affirmed the liability findings and the compensatory and punitive awards on October 21, 2022. Circuit Judge Ronald Gould wrote that “invoking journalism and the First Amendment does not shield individuals from liability for violations of laws applicable to all members of society.”21First Amendment Watch. Ninth Circuit Affirms Anti-Abortion Activists Illegally Infiltrated Planned Parenthood The panel reversed the Federal Wiretap Act finding, ruling that the defendants’ conduct did not satisfy the statute’s requirement of an “independent” criminal or tortious purpose, and vacated about $190,000 in related damages.3Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Planned Parenthood v. Center for Medical Progress The Supreme Court denied certiorari on October 2, 2023, leaving the judgment intact.22Reuters. U.S. Supreme Court Rebuffs Dispute Over Videos Targeting Abortion Providers
The NAF Injunction and Contempt
The National Abortion Federation sued Daleiden separately over the recordings he made at its annual meetings. In February 2016, Judge Orrick issued a preliminary injunction barring public release of more than 500 hours of NAF footage, citing threats to members and the confidentiality agreements Daleiden had signed.23Courthouse News Service. Injunction Against Release of Abortion Groups Videos Stands The order was later made permanent.
Daleiden clashed with it. In May 2017, he and his attorneys posted hours of the barred footage and provider names on his defense counsel’s website, arguing the material had entered the public record through the criminal case. Judge Orrick ordered it removed and scheduled a contempt hearing.24Washington Post. After Release of Covert Videos Judge Might Hold Activist in Contempt The court imposed a contempt fine of nearly $200,000 against Daleiden and his attorneys.23Courthouse News Service. Injunction Against Release of Abortion Groups Videos Stands The Ninth Circuit upheld the permanent injunction, and the Supreme Court denied certiorari in the NAF case in April 2018 and again in October 2023.25SCOTUSblog. Center for Medical Progress v. National Abortion Federation
How Courts Handled the Journalism Defense
Daleiden’s legal team, which included Harmeet Dhillon’s Dhillon Law Group and the Thomas More Society, argued his recordings were protected journalism on a matter of public interest and that the injunctions and damages were unconstitutional prior restraints.26FindLaw. National Abortion Federation v. Center for Medical Progress They also said he was selectively prosecuted for recordings made in restaurants and trade shows while other groups doing undercover work faced no charges.27Dhillon Law Group. David Daleiden Asks Supreme Court to Defend Journalism That Saves Lives
Courts rejected that framing. The Ninth Circuit distinguished lawful investigative reporting from Daleiden’s methods, which included forging signatures, obtaining fake driver’s licenses, and breaching confidentiality agreements. Judge Gould wrote that “journalism and investigative reporting do not require illegal conduct.”28Courthouse News Service. Ninth Circuit Finds Abortion Foes Undercover Tactics Not Protected by First Amendment Americans United for Life, which filed an amicus brief supporting Daleiden, called the ruling an “ominous precedent for undercover journalism.”29Americans United for Life. Ninth Circuit Rules Against Pro-Life Champion David Daleiden With the Supreme Court declining review, the Ninth Circuit’s reasoning stands.
Where Things Stand Now
With the April 2026 expungement and the Supreme Court’s denials in both civil cases, the major litigation is over. Daleiden’s combined civil exposure remains large: about $2.4 million in damages and nearly $13.8 million in attorneys’ fees in the Planned Parenthood case, plus the contempt fine and fee awards in the NAF matter. Daleiden has said the Center for Medical Progress is preparing to release a new investigative project.16World. California Drops Last Charge Against Pro-Life Activist David Daleiden