Souls and Liberty Action Network's Mark Crosby is seeking justice
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Video of the attack (warning: graphic content, can only be watched on YouTube.)
Fourteen months after the brutal assault on Maryland pro-life advocates Mark Crosby and Dick Schaefer, the wheels of justice are at last beginning to turn.
On June 5, Baltimore police issued an arrest warrant for the suspect in the attack, 27-year-old Patrick Brice.
On July 1, the alleged assailant was arrested; the following day, he was released on his own recognizance.
On Aug. 1, Brice was indicted on five counts related to the attack on Crosby and Schaefer: one count of Assault in the First Degree, two counts of Assault in the Second Degree and two counts of Assault on Elderly 65+.
The case is proceeding.
PROFILES IN PRO-LIFE COURAGE
Mark Crosby, the Maryland Captain of Souls and Liberty Action Network, and his friend and pro-life colleague Dick Schaefer, are bold warriors for the unborn. They attend the same parish, Christ the King Catholic Church in Towson, Maryland, and intercede regularly together on behalf of babies whose abortion-minded mothers enter Planned Parenthood's slaughterhouse on North Howard Street in Baltimore.
Crosby has been involved in this ministry for five years. Each morning before his battle against the diabolical agents of death begins, he prays from Fr. Paul O'Sullivan's book, St. Philomena: The Wonder Worker, for the ancient martyr's intercession. His sidewalk station – the light post where he stands – is covered with Miraculous medals (held in place with crazy glue). From there, he gives out 'Rosary Bags' that include prayer cards and holy water. During each session outside the abortion mill, Crosby sprinkles holy water and exorcised salt on the walkway leading to the entrance, in the prayerful hope that the Holy Spirit will tug on the hearts and consciences of those approaching the abortuary.
Schaefer has been active in pro-life work for seven years. Every weekday, he gives out 'Blessing Bags' containing toiletries and snacks to abortion-minded women and men. He encourages desperate mothers to choose life for their children, and urges the deathscorts and abortionists to see the life right in front of them, as they prepare to conduct their bloody business.
Interestingly, in the years that Crosby and Schaefer have been interceding outside the North Howard Street Planned Parenthood facility, the number of deathscorts has plummeted from approximately 109 to fewer than ten today – a testament to the tenacity of their witness.
THE ATTACK
On May 26, 2023, Crosby and Schaefer were at their usual posts outside the Planned Parenthood facility on North Howard Street.
At approximately 10:15 a.m., Brice, who lived near the abortion mill, approached Schaefer to object to his sidewalk counseling.
Schaefer recounts that as Brice was clearly unmoved by his responses, he decided to get a few Blessing Bags out of his box to give to him.
A passerby witnessed what happened next, later recounting that Brice "didn't like their opinion or what was being said. The gentleman just took it into his own hands."
As Schaefer turned to retrieve his baggies, the 6' 5", 200 lb. Brice attacked the then-84-year-old man, knocking him into a nearby concrete planter, and knocking him out cold. When Crosby tried to intercede to defend his friend, Brice forced him to the ground, punching and kicking the then-73-year-old repeatedly in the face.
Jordan Sekulow of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) recently described the horrific physical toll of the attack:
"Both men sustained extensive injuries. Mr. Schaefer had cuts and scrapes all over his body, as well as a cut on his hand that required special bandaging. Mr. Crosby sustained traumatic injuries to his head, including a fractured bone in his face, blindness in one eye, head and neck pain, two fractured fingers, and bruising on his arms and legs."
Reportedly, in fact, Crosby was the most severely-injured pro-life volunteer to survive such an attack in the history of the US pro-life movement.
Once Crosby and Schaefer were on the ground, motionless and bleeding, Brice fled the scene.
THE AFTERMATH
I became aware of the attack on Crosby and Schaefer through my sister, who sent me a Spirit Daily article detailing the assault. Reading the story, I remember seeing Crosby's face – beaten, bruised and bloodied – and recognized him as a member of Church Militant's Resistance chapter in Baltimore. I retrieved his phone number and immediately called, but was unable to reach him. I left a voicemail and then went into prayer for his recovery; he was in and out of the hospital for many days.
Crosby phoned me later to thank me for my voicemail and prayers. He went on to tell me that on June 3, President Trump had phoned him to see how his recovery was progressing. Three times during their twenty-minute conversation, Trump reassured him that his eye would recover quickly, and that he would see again.
Three hours after his conversation with Trump – and just eight days after the brutal attack – Crosby was discharged.
"A complete healing came over me," he later recalled.
During a follow-up evaluation on June 7, Crosby explained to the examining physician that his eyesight had been restored. The doctor agreed, informing him that he would require no operation, after all. Thank Heaven for answered prayer!
Following his recovery, Crosby was honored as Trump's guest at CPAC 2024 in Maryland earlier this year, where he wore the "PRO LIFE" shirt that was cut from his bleeding body the day of the attack.
Though still suffering from their injuries, both men returned to their respective posts outside the North Howard Street abortuary within days of the attack – Crosby in five and Schaefer in three.
Interestingly, looking back on the attack, Crosby calls May 26, 2023 the best day of his life, as the events of that day brought him closer to the Blessed Mother and to Jesus.
The events of that day also shone a light on the demonic reality of what happens, daily, inside Planned Parenthood facilities across the United States. They also proved that the Culture of Death can never hide behind its false pretense of tolerance; sooner or later, the truth of its violent, murderous worldview spills out onto the streets – in this case, in Crosby's and Schaefer's own blood.
As Captain of Souls and Liberty Action Network's Maryland chapter, Crosby will be updating us regularly as this very important federal case proceeds.
Certainly, justice must be served, and the pair are seeking just that in court; but they are not seeking vengeance, for they know that vengeance belongs to God alone. Like the magnanimous men they are, both Crosby and Schaefer long ago forgave Brice for the attack. As Catholics, they recognize that Brice is in desperate need of prayer, and are asking followers of Souls and Liberty to remember the troubled young man in their petitions to God.
As Catholics, and as members of Souls and Liberty Action Network, we are taking action.
We will be praying and fasting for the judge to hear the truth in this case.
We will be praying and fasting for the lawyers to fear not, and to stand on that truth to expose the lies perpetuated in the canceling of life and the sacrificing of America's children.
We will be praying and fasting for the abortionists, the deathscorts and the abortion-minded mothers and fathers of this generation to hear the cries of our nation's unborn and to turn back to God.
And, indeed, we will be praying and fasting for Patrick Brice; for his repentance and conversion of soul, such that one day he may stand alongside Crosby and Schaefer in fighting to preserve the dignity of human life.
To join the Souls and Liberty Action Network, click here.
Editor's note:
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Writer, editor and producer Stephen Wynne has spent the past seven years covering, from a Catholic perspective, the latest developments in the Church, the nation and the world. Prior to his work in journalism, he spent eight years co-authoring “Repairing the Breach,” a book examining the war of worldviews between Christianity and Darwinism. A Show-Me State native, he holds a BA in Creative Writing from Pepperdine University and an Executive MBA from the Bloch School of Business at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
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