Judge skeptical of bias claims by anti-abortion group in suit

SAN FRANCISCO — A U.S. District Court judge deciding whether a fellow judge should disqualify himself from lawsuits over videos by an anti-abortion group said Thursday he could not immediately see any appearance of bias.

Judge James Donato said during a hearing he was “having trouble understanding” how Judge William Orrick’s affiliation with a nonprofit group and two Facebook “likes” by Orrick’s wife created an appearance of bias against defendant David Daleiden.

Donato did not immediately issue a ruling on Daleiden’s request to disqualify Orrick.

Daleiden is a leader of the Center for Medical Progress, which has released videos that it says show Planned Parenthood employees selling fetal tissue for profit. Planned Parenthood has denied that claim and said the videos were deceptively edited.

The videos stoked the American abortion debate when they were released in 2015 and intensified congressional scrutiny of Planned Parenthood that has yet to subside.

Daleiden is seeking to disqualify Orrick from presiding over two lawsuits — one by Planned Parenthood and the other by the National Abortion Federation, an association of abortion providers. In both cases, Daleiden says Orrick has a longstanding relationship with an organization that partners with Planned Parenthood and his wife “liked” Facebook posts critical of Daleiden.