An anti-abortion pregnancy center in Nashville was vandalized overnight

The FBI is joining a Nashville police investigation into an attempted arson at Hope Clinic for Women, which is known for discouraging its patients from seeking abortions. Local police say this is the first local act of vandalism related to the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Officers say the burglar alarm went off just after 1:30 a.m. Thursday morning after the front window was smashed. An un-ignited “Molotov cocktail-type device” was found inside and has been sent to a crime lab for analysis. By 2 p.m., there was no obvious evidence of the overnight vandalism from the street or alley.

Officers say the side of the building had been spray-painted with the words “Janes Revenge.” Letters signed by an alleged abortion rights group calling themselves “Jane’s Revenge” went out before the Supreme Court released its decision that ended federal protections for abortion, calling for riots — which did not happen when the ruling came down.

The Hope Clinic is closely tied to faith-based groups including the Southern Baptist Convention. Its program called “Psalm 139 Project” donated a new ultrasound machine that was dedicated earlier this year.

“We’ve seen over and over that the use of this ultrasound machine has opened the eyes and hearts of countless women and their partners,” Executive Director Kailey Cornett said in February. “For Hope Clinic for Women, over 80 percent walk away from that experience with strength to pursue life and parenting.”

The clinic provides pregnancy testing, ultrasounds and counseling. Police say they are working with leaders to tighten security at the building on Hayes Street in the Midtown area.

Gov. Bill Lee took to Twitter to call the vandalism “terrorism” that “should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood also responded, with Executive Director Francie Hunt saying they “condemned violence in all its forms” while also pointing to “hypocrisy” by the governor. She notes that Lee did not offer his support when a Planned Parenthood clinic in Knoxville was burned to the ground by an arsonist on New Year’s Eve.