Police asked for the public’s help in tracking down those who vandalized and threw two Molotov cocktails into the office of a prominent Wisconsin anti-abortion group’s office that was damaged by fire, the Associated Press reports. No one has been arrested in the fire that was discovered early Sunday when someone driving to Madison’s nearby airport noticed flames coming from the office building, said Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes. The fire at the Wisconsin Family Action office came after two Catholic churches in Colorado, including one known for its annual anti-abortion display, were vandalized last week. Police said two Molotov cocktails were thrown at an anti-abortion organization Sunday morning in a suburb of Salem, Or., after an unsuccessful attempt to break in. Wisconsin Family Action has been a prominent force for years, advocating for laws to limit access to abortions, fighting to overturn Roe v. Wade and working on other hot-button social issues.
The leak of a draft opinion suggesting that the Supreme Court was on course to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide led to protests across the U.S. In Madison, a Molotov cocktail thrown into the Wisconsin Family Action office failed to ignite. The message “If abortions aren’t safe then you aren’t either” was spray-painted on the building. No one was hurt, but Barnes said had someone been in the office “it could have gone differently.” Barnes said, I do anticipate we will be able to solve this but we want to take our time to be sure we do it correctly,” he said. Investigators from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are assisting.