►
Planned Parenthood faces criminal charges: A pattern?
by Andrew Flusche
Released October 24, 2007
Commentary by Andrew Flusche
Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri currently faces 107
criminal charges stemming from 29 alleged unlawful late-term abortions. Even
though a Johnson
County district judge found
probable cause that Planned Parenthood committed these crimes, the organization
claims the charges are simply political. But is a pattern of illegal activity
starting to emerge? Are we starting to connect the dots?
The
scope
Planned Parenthood is enormous. Even though it portrays itself as a
grassroots organization, Planned Parenthood encompasses so much more.
During its 2005-2006 fiscal year, Planned Parenthood reported a total
income of $902.8 million. To provide perspective, this is more than the combined revenues during the same period
for the American Cancer Society, the American Lung Association and the American
Heart Association. In Planned Parenthood’s almost-billion-dollar budget, $305.3 million
came from you, the taxpayers.
This money does not sit in a stale corporate office. It is obtained and
used by 117 affiliates across the country. Planned Parenthood operates
facilities in 859 locations that serve as local focal points to spread its
philosophies throughout your communities.
With this much money, personnel and locations, Planned Parenthood is a
major force in the effort to sexualize America. Is it a leap to suggest that
Planned Parenthood might have broken a few laws along the way?
Statutory rape reporting
Numerous cases suggest that Planned Parenthood does not properly report
statutory rape. Under state laws, workers at Planned Parenthood clinics are
mandatory reporters. It must report child abuse to the authorities. In every
state, a child under 14 years of age cannot consent to sexual activity. If
Planned Parenthood knows that a young child is sexually active with an older
partner, it must report this activity. However, it doesn’t always do
so.
Planned Parenthood Golden Gate even bragged about one egregious case on
its web site. It displayed a letter from a girl praising the clinic for keeping
her rape secret. But the girl was 11 years old at the time of her rape by her
17-year-old boyfriend. After American Life League uncovered this story, Planned
Parenthood promptly removed the letter, but did not even claim to have reported
the rape to authorities.
Another alarming report came out of Waco, Texas.
Planned Parenthood of Waco claims that it reports 98 statutory rape cases per
year. However, Waco researchers dug into all official records
and only found 7.3 reports per year. Planned Parenthood never explained the
absence of each year’s 91 missing reports. Why isn’t it held
accountable?
With all these incidents of failed reporting, civil cases are cropping
up. One terrible example comes from Denise Fairbanks in Ohio. This suit alleges
that Planned Parenthood failed to report a father’s abuse of his daughter since
she was 13 years old. Instead, Planned Parenthood performed an abortion on
Denise and sent her home, allowing the abuse to continue for over a year.
Finally, the father was convicted of sexual assault. Unfortunately, the
deception does not end here.
Death cover-ups
Planned Parenthood provides invasive surgical procedures to its patients.
Contrary to Planned Parenthood’s claims, abortions entail serious risks. Instead
of promptly notifying health authorities when patients are injured, Planned
Parenthood appears to cover up these incidents.
In 2002, Diana Lopez bled to death after her cervix was punctured during
an abortion at the Los Angeles Planned Parenthood. The California Department of
Health Services cited Planned Parenthood for seven separate violations of health
regulations, including failing to notify the health department of Ms. Lopez’s
death within 24 hours. The other citations centered on failing to properly
prepare for the procedure, advise the patient of risks and keep sufficient
records about Ms. Lopez.
While Planned Parenthood would claim this was an isolated incident, the
facts say otherwise. Earlier this year, 21-year-old Edrica Goode died from toxic
shock after beginning an abortion procedure through Planned Parenthood of San
Diego and Riverside Counties. The California Department of
Health Services again filed a deficiency ruling against Planned Parenthood for
failing to report Ms. Goode’s death within 24 hours. After repeating this same
violation, it begins to look like Planned Parenthood does not respect medical
regulations.
Kansas criminal
charges
With this short background on Planned Parenthood, the pending criminal
charges in Kansas do not seem outlandish. By looking
deeper into the charges, their substance and weight becomes even more
apparent.
Planned Parenthood was required to turn over 29 patient files for a
government investigation. The files were completely sanitized of patient
identification, so no breach of patient privacy existed. During the
investigation, the Johnson County district attorney determined that
all 29 files revealed an unlawful late-term abortion.
Abortion is legal in Kansas after a doctor certifies the baby is
not viable. In order to perform a late-term (post-viability) abortion,
Kansas law
requires that two doctors certify the
abortion is necessary for the mother’s mental or physical health. The charges
allege that Planned Parenthood did not appropriately follow these laws and keep
accurate documentation about the doctors’ findings.
Is it a leap to think the Kansas charges are accurate? After several
other instances of failing to follow laws and regulations, Planned Parenthood’s
reputation is stained. It claims to have medical standards in place at its
clinics, but Planned Parenthood refuses to reveal any information to you. The
American people should insist that Planned Parenthood precisely follow all laws
and regulations.
Instead of letting Planned Parenthood sweep the Kansas criminal charges
away, it should come to court and defend itself. Planned Parenthood of Kansas
and Mid-Missouri is innocent until proven guilty, but the Johnson County district attorney should have the
chance to prove his case. District attorneys around the country should be
encouraged by this example and begin their own investigations to hold Planned
Parenthood accountable.
Andrew Flusche is the staff attorney at American Life
League. He graduated from the University of Virginia
School of Law and he is licensed to practice law by the
Commonwealth of
Virginia.
Release issued: 24 Oct 07
|
