A federal court has ruled the city of Elgin, Ill., acted unconstitutionally in shutting down a mobile pregnancy help center, Baptist Press reports. Federal judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan issued a permanent injunction Aug. 8 against a 2012 amendment to the city's zoning code that effectively prevented Life Center from operating its mobile unit more than four times a year at each of two locations. The City Council of Elgin, which is located 35 miles northwest of Chicago, changed the zoning code to classify the mobile facility for "temporary land use," according to Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which represents Life Center in the case. The new injunction means Life Center may again park its mobile pregnancy help center at Evangelical Covenant Church and JB's Pub & Bar, both of which are located near Elgin Larkin High School. The mobile unit provides free ultrasounds, pregnancy information and services. "Women deserve access to the help they need for themselves and their unborn children without undue interference from the government," said ADF senior counsel Steven Aden. "Life Center's free services help both the city and its citizens, so the city's actions have been both counterproductive and unconstitutional." Life Center operates the mobile unit under the name TLC Pregnancy Services.
