Undercover journalist David Daleiden sues Planned Parenthood, Kamala Harris in fetal harvesting case

The journalist at the center of the 2015 Planned Parenthood fetal body part scandal has launched a lawsuit against the organization California Sen. Kamala Harris and California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, alleging they have conspired to violate his constitutional rights over the past several years. 

David Daleiden, the founder of the Center for Medical Progress, became internationally known five years ago when he began publishing secretly recorded videos of high-ranking Planned Parenthood officials appearing to admit that the organization was selling aborted fetal body parts to medical research companies, a violation of federal law. 

The videos, which launched congressional inquiries and ultimately led to Planned Parenthood refusing to receive any more reimbursements for fetal tissue samples, have been the subject of acrimonious legal and political battles over the past half-decade. California authorities claim that Daleiden violated state statute regarding confidential recordings. 

In a press release on Wednesday announcing the lawsuit, the Center for Medical Progress claimed that Kamala Harris, then the attorney general of California, "targeted Daleiden’s speech under the video recording law at the urging of Planned Parenthood, the National Abortion Federation, and StemExpress, a fetal tissue procurement company with deep ties to the professional abortion industry."

"While running for U.S. Senate, Harris had a secret in-person meeting with Planned Parenthood executives in Los Angeles, including witnesses in her investigation, to discuss issues in the investigation as part of Planned Parenthood’s political agenda in California. Two weeks later, Daleiden’s home was raided by the California Department of Justice," the organization claims. 

Among the requests of the lawsuit is a permanent injunction against the enforcement of the state's recording law.