For Texas Judge in Abortion Case, a Life Shaped by Conservative Causes

Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk and his wife, Shelly Kacsmaryk, were devastated when their first child, a girl they named Tyndale, was stillborn.

It was 2006 and a searing, formative experience for Judge Kacsmaryk, then a lawyer at the prominent Texas firm Baker Botts. He became involved in and later served on the board of a Texas Christian organization that provides housing and adoption services to women with unplanned pregnancies as an alternative to abortion.

“Matthew and Shelly’s first child was stillborn, and I think that contributed to his interest in wanting to support women in all kinds of ways, but most especially when they are pregnant,” said Sherri Statler, the president and chief executive of the group, Christian Homes & Family Services in Abilene. “They often feel pressured into getting an abortion until they find out there is an organization that will support them through their pregnancy.”

Judge Kacsmaryk, now a federal judge in Amarillo, Texas, issued a preliminary ruling on Friday evening invalidating the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of a widely available abortion drug in one of the most-watched court cases since the Supreme Court overturned the right to an abortion. A coalition of anti-abortion groups and doctors have sued the Food and Drug Administration, seeking to void the agency’s approval of the drug mifepristone.

His ruling clashed with that of another federal court, setting up a legal standoff that is likely to escalate to the Supreme Court.

The case has put a spotlight on Judge Kacsmaryk, 45, a Trump appointee whose conservative views have prompted accusations that anti-abortion groups judge-shopped to find a sympathetic jurist to limit access to medication abortion — allegations that lawyers for the plaintiffs have denied. The focus only intensified after the judge, in a highly unusual move, asked lawyers in the case not to publicize a hearing. He cited death threats, harassing calls and concerns of a “circuslike atmosphere.”

Judge Kacsmaryk rose to the federal bench after years litigating at a conservative religious freedom firm, First Liberty Institute. Democrats opposed his 2019 confirmation based on his history of opposing L.G.B.T.Q. rights. Last fall, he found that the Biden administration’s guidelines for protections for L.G.B.T.Q. workers went too far. He also recently ruled that a federal program aimed at giving teenagers access to confidential contraception violated the U.S. Constitution and state law.

Activists have demonstrated in front of the federal court building in downtown Amarillo, voicing their fears that this case could prove another devastating blow to women seeking abortions. They worry the judge will bring his personal views to the case, pointing to his previous rulings in other hot-button issues.

“He’s advocating a political perspective from his perch on the bench,” said Rachel O’Leary Carmona, the executive director of the Women’s March, an advocacy group. She lives in Amarillo and has been helping to organize protests around the case.

Judge Kacsmaryk did not respond to requests for comment for this article, but several longtime friends and former co-workers described an experienced courtroom litigator shaped by his religious upbringing and faith. They rejected the idea that the judge would let personal views influence a decision.

“He’s a real by-the-book stickler,” said Hiram Sasser, executive general counsel for First Liberty Institute.

Born in Florida in 1977, Judge Kacsmaryk moved to Texas when he was a child. His father worked in the defense industry, and he grew up dreaming of working for the C.I.A., said Ephraim Wernick, a law school friend.

In an email, Mr. Wernick said he felt news media coverage of Judge Kacsmaryk unfairly painted him as an ideologue.

“Matt understands the properly limited role of a judge in our constitutional system,” he said. “I am confident that any decisions he makes from the bench will be grounded in careful study of law, facts and precedent.”

Judge Kacsmaryk attended Abilene Christian University, a private college, then the University of Texas law school in Austin.

After graduating in 2003, he joined Baker Botts, stayed for five years, became a federal prosecutor and in 2014 joined First Liberty Institute.

Mike Berry, the vice president of external affairs for First Liberty Institute, said he often sought Judge Kacsmaryk’s advice.

“He was a very serious litigator, and he’d been in a lot of courtroom battles,” Mr. Berry said. “He knew his stuff. I could go to him and just trust that he had that instant credibility.”

Mr. Berry recalled a conversation with Judge Kacsmaryk about their shared opinion that great attorneys can separate personal emotions from their client’s best interest. The conversation then turned to judges.

“A good judge will sometimes reach decisions or conclusions that they don’t feel they personally would want but what the law requires,” Mr. Berry said. “We both believe that’s true.”

Although Judge Kacsmaryk’s family members, including his parents, did not respond to requests for comment, records and interviews with friends suggest his conservative views have remained a major part of his identity, both in his professional and personal life. He lists himself in his profile for the federal courts as a current member of the Federalist Society and the Philadelphia Society, a national conservative organization.

He served on the board of Ms. Statler’s organization, Christian Homes & Family Services, from 2016 until he became a judge. He and his wife remain donors, Ms. Statler said.

His experience with her group runs deep, she said. Judge Kacsmaryk’s sister used Christian Homes & Family Services years ago to put up her son for adoption. Ms. Statler said she could say no more for privacy reasons, and Judge Kacsmaryk’s sister, Jennifer Griffith, did not respond to multiple requests for comment from The New York Times.

But Ms. Griffith told The Washington Post earlier this year that her brother had come to support her when she was a pregnant 17-year-old and had fled to Christian Homes. He held her baby in his arms, she said, and that experience, along with leaving the infant with adoptive parents, solidified her brother’s belief that every pregnancy should be treasured.

“He’s very passionate about the fact that you can’t preach pro-life and do nothing,” Ms. Griffith told The Post.

Ms. Statler agreed about Judge Kacsmaryk. “I just know he just has a real tender spot for caring for women,” she told The Times, “and particularly women who are pregnant.”

Julie Tate contributed research.