Colorado taxpayers paid more than $6 million after a federal judge threw out the state's abortion pill reversal ban.
California watched that disaster and dragged two pro-life groups into court anyway.
Then the state's star witness took the stand and could not give Rob Bonta what he needed.
Rob Bonta Wants $20 Million in the First Abortion Pill Reversal Trial
California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued Heartbeat International and the RealOptions pregnancy centers in September 2023.
He accused them of breaking California's false advertising and unfair competition laws.
Their offense was telling women about abortion pill reversal.
The treatment uses progesterone to counter mifepristone, the first drug in a chemical abortion, for women who change their minds.
It is legal in California.
Bonta still wants more than $20 million in penalties from Heartbeat International, $600,000 from RealOptions, and a court order barring them from calling the treatment safe and effective.
The case went to trial on June 24 before Judge Patrick McKinney of Alameda County Superior Court.
Six weeks, 25 witnesses, and roughly 200 exhibits later, closing arguments wrapped up on September 17.
Heartbeat International calls it the first case of its kind to reach trial.
McKinney has 90 days to rule, which puts a decision on track for around mid-December.
Abortion Pill Reversal Mother Testified for the Daughter She Almost Lost
Three mothers who used abortion pill reversal took the stand for the defense.
One of them was Elizabeth.
She swallowed mifepristone at Planned Parenthood during a rocky time with her boyfriend, Ben, and regretted it almost immediately.
Ben texted her and urged her to try to stop it.
They found the Abortion Pill Rescue Network online, and a local provider started her on progesterone.
Their daughter, Evelyn, was born in January 2024.
Elizabeth and Ben got counseling and parenting classes at a pregnancy center in Paradise and got married.
In the fall of 2025, they welcomed a second child, a son named Benson.
"I owe my daughter's life to Abortion Pill Reversal and the pregnancy center that helped me," Elizabeth said.
Bonta's lawsuit targets Heartbeat International, the group that runs the Abortion Pill Rescue Network Elizabeth found online.
Bonta's Star Witness Could Not Say Abortion Pill Reversal Fails
The state's first witness was Dr. Mitchell Creinin of UC Davis, its lead expert against the treatment.
Under cross-examination, Creinin could not say that abortion pill reversal does not work or that it is unsafe, according to trial reports.
That was supposed to be the heart of Bonta's case.
It got worse for the state.
According to the same reports, a representative of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists admitted the group's guidance against the treatment came from its government relations department – a non-medical opinion.
"Not a single woman has come forward claiming harm from Abortion Pill Reversal – not one," said Paul Jonna of the Thomas More Society, which represents the two groups.
The results tell the real story.
A 2018 study co-written by Dr. George Delgado found the high-dose oral progesterone protocol saved 68 percent of pregnancies, compared with 25 percent for women who got no treatment.
Critics will note that co-author Dr. Mary Davenport serves as RealOptions' medical director.
But the defense says that after three years and a six-week trial, California still couldn't produce one woman the treatment hurt or a single consumer complaint against the two groups.
RealOptions reports 44 babies born after its reversal treatment, and the Abortion Pill Rescue Network counts more than 8,000 lives saved.
Colorado Already Lost Its Fight Against Abortion Pill Reversal
California isn't the first blue state to go after this treatment.
Colorado passed the nation's first ban on abortion pill reversal in 2023.
A Catholic clinic and a nurse practitioner sued, and U.S. District Judge Daniel Domenico permanently blocked the law.
He ruled it "unconstitutionally infringes upon religious liberty."
Colorado taxpayers ended up paying $6.1 million to the plaintiffs' lawyers.
California Lawsuit Tests the First Amendment Rights of Pregnancy Centers
Bonta can't ban abortion pill reversal outright, so he's trying to make it too expensive to talk about.
A $20 million fine would do to a pro-life charity what no law in California has managed to do – shut it up.
"The Constitution does not allow the government to silence charities for offering women free, religiously motivated information about a legal, safe medical option," said the Thomas More Society's Peter Breen.
Heartbeat International general counsel Danielle White put it more simply.
"Women deserve to know all of their options," she said.
"They don't lose that right after beginning a chemical abortion."
Evelyn is walking around today because her mother learned she had one more option.
Bonta wants to make sure the next Elizabeth never hears about it.
Sources:
- Lisa Bourne, "California Spent 6 Weeks in Court, Can't Find One Woman Hurt by Abortion Pill Reversal," LifeNews.com, September 18, 2026.
- Thomas More Society, "Closing Arguments Happening This Week in CA 'Abortion Pill Reversal' Case," Live Action News, September 16, 2026.
- Faith Miller, "California Forces First Ever US Trial Over Abortion Pill Reversal," The Daily Caller, June 22, 2026.
- Joshua Arnold, "California Puts Abortion Pill Reversal on Trial," The Washington Stand, July 9, 2026.
- Lisa Bourne, "Abortion Pill Reversal Saved This Baby's Life When her Mom Changed Her Mind," LifeNews.com, August 31, 2026.
- "Pregnancy Centers Fighting California in Court to Defend Abortion Pill Reversal," LifeNews.com, July 20, 2026.
- "New Abortion Pill Reversal Study Shows a 68% Success Rate," Catholic Medical Association, April 4, 2018.
- "Colorado to Pay $6.1 Million Over Attempt to Ban Abortion Pill 'Reversal,'" The Colorado Sun, January 19, 2026.
