New York Woman Arrested After Assaulting Pro-Life Activist During Street Interview

Published: 4/11/2025, 11:43:41 PM EDT

New York Woman Arrested After Assaulting Pro-Life Activist During Street Interview — A New York Police Department vehicle in a file photo. (Godongphoto/Shutterstock)

A Bronx woman was arrested after allegedly punching a pro-life activist during a street interview about Planned Parenthood, authorities confirmed.

Brianna Rivers, 30, was arrested Thursday on one count of second-degree assault and released Friday on her own recognizance, the New York Police Department told NTD News.

The incident occurred on April 3 when Savannah Craven, a 23-year-old pro-life journalist, was conducting street interviews in New York City in collaboration with Live Action, an anti-abortion organization. According to footage shared by Live Action, the interview with Rivers started out fine but escalated after a disagreement about abortion.

"Savannah was working with Live Action conducting man-in-the-street interviews, asking passersby 'Do you know what Planned Parenthood does?'" the organization stated on Instagram. "While initially friendly, the woman being interviewed became violent after discovering Savannah was pro-life—and began punching her in the face."

The video shows Rivers initially discussing Planned Parenthood services positively, mentioning birth control, condoms, and counseling. The conversation grew heated when Craven presented statistics about Planned Parenthood's services and funding, claiming the organization receives nearly $700 million in taxpayer money annually while many of its non-abortion services have declined.

The confrontation intensified when Craven asked Rivers if it would be better to give unwanted babies up for adoption rather than abort them. Rivers disagreed, and when Craven asked if children in foster care should be killed, Rivers responded, "Why not?"

The assault occurred shortly after Craven stated, "I'm not the one who admitted they would be okay with killing babies in foster care and killing children that have been abused,” with the video then showing Rivers striking Craven, causing a laceration near her eyebrow that required stitches, according to an interview with content creator David Medina shared on Craven’s Instagram.

"All I could see was blood dripping on the ground. I couldn't tell where the blood was dripping from. It was horrific," Craven said in the interview. "I have very few times where I just go into full-blown anxiety attack. And this is one of the times in my life where I just fall out. Could not think straight."

Rivers has defended herself on social media following the incident. In an April 5 Facebook post, she wrote: "I sincerely apologize but cannot sit around and allow you to continue pushing this one sided narrative. I understand hands being put on someone is never the answer, but throwing rocks and hiding hands is worse."

Rivers claimed Craven was a "professional antagonist" who "railroaded" her and called for the release of unedited footage. "She has million views making me out to be a 'child killing' monster when she knows the truth," Rivers wrote.

Following the incident, Rivers briefly created a GoFundMe page titled "Donate to help Brianna Rivers Find Legal Protection," which has since been removed from the platform.

Rivers addressed the page’s removal in a Facebook update on Friday evening. She alleged fans of the pro-life journalist, who has over 90,000 followers on YouTube, reported the donation page which resulted in its removal.

GoFundMe told NTD News that Rivers' GoFundMe page “was removed from the platform because it violated GoFundMe's Terms of Service, and all donors have been refunded."

Despite the attack, Craven said in the Medina interview that she remains committed to her advocacy. "I am not stopping. This has only inspired me more," she said. "I have a pink and purple eye for maybe a week or so. But that is a fair trade, considering what happens to over 1,000 babies every single day."

Rivers did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NTD News.