On day 14 of Planned Parenthood’s retaliatory lawsuit against CMP undercover investigators, Plaintiff PPFA’s conference organizer, the National Abortion Federation’s Security Director, a Planned Parenthood-paid “expert”, and Plaintiff Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains’ in-house lawyer, each took the witness stand in San Francisco federal court.
- Vikky Graziani, PPFA’s former conference planner, revealed to defense attorney Harmeet Dhillon that she registered CMP’s undercover subsidiary BioMax Procurement Services, LLC to exhibit at PPFA’s North American Forum on Family Planning in Miami simply based on Dr. Deborah Nucatola’s recommendation. Graziani could not name any follow up vetting that she relied on to admit BioMax other than a conversation with Dr. Nucatola that she could not recall in detail.
- Graziani also called NAF’s vetting process and security procedures for Exhibitors the “gold standard.” When asked what she knew about the vetting process for Exhibitors like BioMax, Graziani testified she had no knowledge of NAF’s vetting process but that she thought “NAF security” was in charge of it.
- Graziani admitted that PPFA’s conference check-in staff were never trained to identify fake IDs when presenting name badges to conference goers, and that PPFA only told Exhibitors to show “ID”, not “government ID”.
- NAF’s Security Director Michelle Davidson testified that NAF is not a party to Planned Parenthood’s lawsuit. Yet, PPFA is suing CMP et al for alleged breach of NAF contracts.
- Davidson testified, contrary to Graziani’s assumptions, that NAF Security did not do vetting of Exhibitors at the NAF trade shows that BioMax attended. When asked about what guidance NAF Security gave to NAF Group Purchasing, who was in charge of admitting Exhibitors, Davidson admitted, “We didn’t talk about vetting. Like I said, that wasn’t part of my department’s duties.”
- Davidson also admitted that she did not train NAF Group Purchasing to check an ID, and that the changes NAF made to its security procedures for conferences after the undercover videos were an “upgrade”.
- Drexel University professor and lawyer David Cohen, who represents several Planned Parenthood affiliates and gave legal advice to Planned Parenthood leadership involved in the current lawsuit, testified as Planned Parenthood’s expert on “harassment” of abortion providers. Cohen admitted he supports no legal limits on abortion up to 9 months, and that his use of false statements and psuedonyms in one of his books is protected by the First Amendment.
- Plaintiff PPRM’s lawyer Kevin Paul testified that PPRM’s main office and megaclinic has a sign posted outside it putting the public on notice any conversations taking place on the grounds of the “campus” may be recorded.
Proceedings continue at 8 A.M. on Monday, November 4, in San Francisco Federal District Court at 450 Golden Gate Ave, San Francisco, CA 94102, in Courtroom 2 on Floor 17.
