Stated here is some of the law of the land, both federal and of the State of California (the bold and italics are my emphasis):
** 1. What is the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE)? The Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act -- often abbreviated as FACE or FACEA -- is a United States law protecting reproductive health service facilities and their staff and patients from violent threats, assault, vandalism, and blockade. Despite its name, FACE also provides the same protection to churches and other places of worship, and to their congregants as well.
** 3. What kinds of activity does the statute prohibit? FACE makes it illegal to use force, the threat of force, or "physical obstruction" intentionally to a) "injure" b) "intimidate" c) "interfere with," or d) attempt to injure/intimidate/interfere with someone because that person is engaged in "obtaining or providing reproductive health services," as those terms are defined in the statute (see below). The same prohibition applies to these same acts committed against someone "lawfully exercising or seeking to exercise the First Amendment right of religious freedom at a place of religious worship."
To clarify the meaning of the law and protect against a challenge that the law is unconstitutionally vague, Congress included explicit definitions for several of the key terms used above: "The term 'interfere with' means to restrict a person's freedom of movement." "The term 'intimidate' means to place a person in reasonable apprehension of bodily harm to him- or herself or to another." "The term 'physical obstruction' means rendering impassable ingress to or egress from a facility that provides reproductive health services or to or from a place of religious worship, or rendering passage to or from such a facility or place of religious worship unreasonably difficult or hazardous." "The term 'reproductive health services' means reproductive health services provided in a hospital, clinic, physician's office, or other facility, and includes medical, surgical, counselling or referral services relating to the human reproductive system, including services relating to pregnancy or the termination of a pregnancy."
** 4. What are the penalties for violating the law? FACE provides for both civil remedies and criminal penalties. The criminal penalties vary according to the severity of the offense and the defendant's prior record of FACE violations. Generally, a first- time offender cannot be sentenced to more than 1 year in prison and a $100,000 fine. For a second or subsequent violation after a prior FACE conviction, a defendant may be imprisoned for no more than 3 years and fined $250,000. _See_ 18 U.S.C. secs. 3559 & 3571 (setting forth applicable fines for different categories of federal offenses). However, more lenient limits apply in cases of exclusively nonviolent physical obstruction. A first-time "blockader" faces no more than 6 months and a $10,000 fine; for subsequent violations, the maximum penalty is 18 months and $25,000. On the other hand, if the offense results in bodily injury, the maximum sentence increases to 10 years, regardless of whether it is a first offense. If death results from the offense, the maximum sentence is life imprisonment. Note that all of the above figures represent *maximum* sentences. (FACE imposes no mandatory minimum sentences.) Offenders are sentenced according to the separate United States Sentencing Guidelines, which require a sentencing calculation based on the severity of the offense and the defendant's prior convictions (whether for FACE violations or for other crimes). Except for career criminals with lengthy records, the Guidelines seldom impose a sentence near the statutory maximum. A first- time nonviolent FACE offender with little or no criminal past would normally be eligible for home detention, "supervised release" (probation), or other alternatives to full incarceration.
Civil remedies: A person injured by a FACE violation may bring a civil suit against the offender. The statute allows a private plaintiff to obtain temporary, preliminary, or permanent injunctive relief, and compensatory and punitive damages, and fees for attorneys. In lieu of proving actual compensatory damages, a plaintiff may elect to recover $5,000 for each violation proven. The U.S. Attorney General (or any state attorney general) may also bring suit in federal court on behalf of third parties injured by FACE violations. In such actions, the court may award the injured parties the types of remedy listed above; moreover, the court may impose civil fines on defendants according to the following schedule: - first offense, nonviolent physical obstruction: $10,000 - other first offenses: $15,000 - subsequent offenses for nonviolent physical obstruction: $15,000 - other subsequent offenses: $25,000 Finally, note that FACE does not limit the availability of civil remedies or criminal penalties allowed under state law for the same conduct.
Read more: http://www.faqs.org/faqs/law/clinic-access/#ixzz0jyGarIBb
And then there is the Penal Code of the State of California, which states in pertinent part:
SECTION 423-423.6
423. This title shall be known and may be cited as the California Freedom of Access to Clinic and ChurchEntrances Act, or the California FACE Act.
. . .
423.2. Every person who, except a parent or guardian acting towards his or her minor child or ward, commits any of the following acts shall be
subject to the punishment specified in Section 423.3.
. . .
(b) By force, threat of force, or physical obstruction that is a crime of violence, intentionally injures, intimidates, interferes with, or attempts
to injure, intimidate, or interfere with any person lawfully exercising or seeking to exercise the First Amendment right of religious
freedom at a place of religious worship .
. . .
(d) By nonviolent physical obstruction, intentionally injures, intimidates, or interferes with, or attempts to injure, intimidate, or interfere
with, any person lawfully exercising or seeking to exercise the First Amendment right of religious freedom at a place of
religious worship.
423.3. (a) A first violation of subdivision (c) or (d) of Section 423.2 is a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for a period
of not more than six months and a fine not to exceed two thousand dollars ($2,000).
(b) A second or subsequent violation of subdivision (c) or (d) of Section 423.2 is a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail
for a period of not more than six months and a fine not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000).