Someone sought Josepha Seletz MD

Seletz is associated with Eve Surgical Center, where Oriane Shevin got her fatal dose of RU-486.

Selez is not in any kind of trouble that I can spot with medical boards.

Which makes her a refreshing break from most Los Angeles abortionists I've blogged about.

The search for Andre Nehorayoff

Seek and ye shall find.

Andre Nehorayoff was responsible for the deaths of "Ellen" Roe and "Faye" Roe.

I decided to see what else I could about this guy. Here are summaries from New York Medical Board disciplinary documents.

Regarding Patient A, who I'll call "Ada":

Ada was 36 years old when she went to Nehorayoff's office in Manhattan, "known as Manhattan Women's Medical Offices," on June 23, 1990, to have a D&E to remove a fetus that had died of natural causes. Nehorayoff "failed to perform and/or record the findings of an adequate medical history and physical examination." He did not order proper tests, and did not use laminaria to dilate Ada's cervix. He inadequately dilated Ada's cervix, then had her given Anaprox and oral fluids, which was inappropriate given Ada's condition. Ada was in the recovery room from noon to 5:25 p.m. "During this period the Patient was weak, unresponsive and had a falling blood pressure. Respondent should have transferred the Patient to a hospital by 2 p.m. Instead, he waited until 5:25 p.m. when the patient was cyanotic with a blood pressure of 80/0."

At 5:25, Nehorayoff "inappropriately decided" to transfer Ada to a hospital two hours away. Ada's husband insisted that an ambulance be called to transfer Ada to a nearby hospital. Because Nehorayoff had no back-up arrangements with any local hospital, a nurse called 911, and Ada was taken to Beth Israel Medical Center.

Upon admission, Ada's hemoglobin was 7.8 and her hematocrit 23.4. her blood pressure was 80/0, and her pulse a racing 126. She was in shock. Emergency surgery found two lacerations in Ada's uterus. The bleeding could not be controlled. Surgeons at Beth Israel had to perform an emergency hysterectomy to save Ada's life.

Regarding Patient B, who I'll call "Brandy":

Brandy was 18 years old when she went to Nehorayoff's office on November 22, 1989, for a second trimester abortion. Nehorayoff "failed to perform and/or record the findings of an adequate medical history and physical examination." He didn't use laminaria and inadequately dilated her cervix. During the abortion, Nehorayoff pulled a loop of Brandy's bowel through her cervix through a 2.5 cm tear he'd made in the back of her uterus.

Instead of stopping the procedure and transferring Brandy to a hospital, Nehorayoff just continued with the abortion. Only after the abortion did he hospitalize Brandy. Surgeons there found "a 6.5 segment of devascularized bowel" which they had to remove. They also had to remove fetal parts Nehorayoff had left in Brandy's uterus.

Regarding Patient C, who I'll call "Camille":

Camille was 22 years old when Nehorayoff performed a first-trimester abortion on her in his office on September 20, 1988. Camille returned on September 28, reporting lower abdominal pain. Nehorayoff didn't order a sonogram, perform a pregnancy test, or review Camille's pathology report. "It was not until on or about October 18, 1988, that Respondent ordered a sonogram and diagnosed an ectopic pregnancy." This delay in diagnosis could have resulted in Camille's death.

Regarding Patient D, who I'll call "Demitria":

Demitria was 27 years old when she went to Nehorayoff's office on October 18, 1988, for a second-trimester abortion. Like with his other second trimester patients, Nehorayoff failed to record an adequate history and physical, failed to use laminaria, and inadequately dilated Demitria's cervix.

Despite Demitria's low hematocrit of only 26%, Nehorayoff performed the abortion on an outpatient basis. Evidently this abortion was either incomplete or unsuccessful, because Nehorayoff performed a second D&E on Demitria on October 22. He failed to perform a hematocrit prior to this second surgery. He did not record any pre-operative or post-operative diagnosis, and did not order a pathology exam for the tissues removed. The board concluded that this second D&E procedure was therefore not medically indicated.

Here is documentation of his petition to get his license back. You need a subscription to read the whole thing, but here's a segment:

In 1991, the Board of Regents permanently revoked petitioner's license
to practice medicine after he negligently performed five abortions, one resulting in a patient's death, and failed to maintain proper records. Eighteen months later, petitioner applied for restoration of his medical license, maintaining that he recognized the "deficiencies" in his conduct. As proof of his rehabilitation, petitioner submitted certificates of attendance at various medical conferences and courses, and also submitted letters from friends and colleagues attesting to his character.

Petitioner's application was first reviewed by a Peer Review Committee.... After a hearing, the Peer Review Committee concluded that petitioner had "sufficiently fulfilled" the standards of rehabilitation and remorse necessary to resume the practice of medicine. Accordingly, it unanimously recommended that the revocation of petitioner's license be stayed, that he be placed on probation for three years and that, upon completion of probation, his license be restored.

....

Although the Committee on the Professions remained "troubled" by the seriousness of petitioner's misconduct, it recommended, by a two-to-one vote, restoration of petitioner's license with restrictions. The Committee recommended a 10-year probation period, the first five years limited to a hospital setting.

One big difference

This little argument is floating around the blogosphere:

How “Ashley’s Treatment” is like Abortion Rights

The piece compares the radical, controversial treatments chosen by Ashley's parents to keep her small with abortions chosen by other parents.

There's a huge difference those folks are missing:

Ashley's parents did what they did, right or wrong, to keep their child with them. Women have abortions to get rid of their children.

Intent. Intent. Intent.

A study in contrasts

A Tribute to Miep

Miep Gies, one of the people who risked their lives to hide Anne Frank and her family from the Nazis, is 98 today.

Though the thought that Gies is still alive in the world isn't doing much to counter my current fit of nihilism. It seems like there are far more people in the world celebrating selfishness, rejoicing that they can have their own children put to death at their word, than there are people like Miep Gies, who risked her life trying to save others. Who still weeps that she was unable to save somebody else's child.

I guess it's all a matter of where your priorities are.

HT: The Point

A criminal abortion death: Mrs. Margaret Marts

On May 28, 1920, Dr. E. Anderson was convicted of manslaughter in the death of Mrs. Margaret Ann Marts. He was a practicing physician in Kansas City, Missouri.

Mrs. Marts had given birth on August 19, 1919. She recovered well, bottle-fed the baby, and began menstruating again about four weeks after the birth.

On January 19, 1920, the family physician, Dr. Davis, was called to examine Mrs. Marts. She'd stopped menstruating about six weeks earlier, had concluded that she was pregnant, and had attempted to perform an abortion on herself with a catheter. She said that if Dr. Davis didn't do an abortion, she'd find somebody else who would because she'd rather die than give birth again.

Upon examining Mrs. Marts, Dr. Davis found some irritation caused by the catheter, and an enlarged uterus which he attributed to pregnancy. However, in order to divert Mrs. Marts away from the idea of trying to abort, he told her that she wasn't pregnant. He administered a douche and noted that his patient was in good health.

Dr. Davis then told Mr. Marts that his wife was pregnant, and explained his efforts to turn her mind away from the idea of aborting.

That afternoon, Mrs. Marts turned to a Dr. Anderson, who she'd previously never seen. He did not examine her, but made arrangements to go to her home around noon the following day, January 20, to perform "an operation." According to Anderson, Mrs. Marts had given her name as "Mrs. Crooks," and said that she was about two months pregnant and that she had bought an instrument in a drug store, which she'd then used to try to induce an abortion.

On January 20, Mrs. Marts placed a call to the home of her friend, Mrs. Stella Blythe. Mrs. Blythe's sister, Mrs. Mattie Wallace, was visiting and took the call. Mrs. Marts asked Mrs. Wallace to send Mrs. Blythe to her house, because she was going to be chloroformed. Both sisters went to Mrs. Marts' home. Dr. Anderson was there, along with a Black woman named Ida Bush. Mrs. Marts was in bed, and Dr. Anderson was in the kitchen preparing his instruments.

Dr. Anderson sent Ida Bush to get some chloroform. Mrs. Blythe remained in the bedroom, but her sister, due to her "delicate condition," left the room. One of the women helped with administering the chloroform. Mrs. Blythe did not see all the details of what Dr. Anderson did, but noticed that he used two instruments. She took one to be a speculum, and described the other as about a foot long and similar to scissors. Dr. Anderson used water and cotton during the procedure, which took about fifteen minutes. Mrs. Blythe testified that she didn't know what Dr. Anderson was doing with the instruments.

Mrs. Blythe reported that some time between noon and 1:00, Mrs. Wallace asked Dr. Anderson, "Now what time will this pass?" And Dr. Anderson responded, "That will be all right about 4 or 5 o'clock." Neither party said specifically what would pass. Mrs. Marts also asked Mrs. Blythe to call Mr. Marts and tell him that she'd been operated on and was doing well.

Four days later, Dr. Davis, the family physician, was called in to examine Mrs. Marts, who had taken to her bed and was in serious condition. She was expelling a foul-smelling mix of blood and pus. Dr. Davis found damage to her uterus, clearly from an abortion, and treated her for her infection.

Mrs. Marts spoke to her husband of what had happened. The conversation took place shortly before she was taken to the hospital on January 24 or 25. She told him she was sure she was dying, and that she blamed Dr. Anderson. She said that Dr. Anderson had lied to her, telling her that the operation wouldn't be "very severe," and that she'd only be sick three or four days. She said she was sorry she'd gone to Anderson. She also gave her husband instructions regarding the care of their children.

Mrs. Martz was discharged from the hospital for reasons that aren't clear in Westlaw documents. She again conversed with her husband about what had happened, asserting that she knew she was dying, that it was Dr. Anderson's fault, and that she was sorry she'd ever gone to him. She gave her husband the details of the operation, but these details were not revealed in Westlaw documents.

Mrs. Marts died in her home on February 15, 1920, two or three days after her discharge from the hospital. Dr. J.S. Snider performed an autopsy that day, and concluded that she'd died of sepsis. She still had retained placenta in her uterus which could not have still been from her recent term pregnancy since she couldn't have become pregnant again after the birth if she had retained the placenta. Dr. Snider verified that some instrument larger than a catheter had been used to cause an abortion.

Anderson admitted that he had chloroformed and operated upon Mrs. Marts on the 20th of January, but insisted that he'd only been treating her for the infection and damage she'd done to herself with the catheter. He also said that Mr. Marts had assaulted him, choked him, and tried to shake him down for $500.

Ida Bush, who had been present at the home on the 20th, described the instruments, said that she'd boiled water for sterilizing them, but that she was sent out of the room and did not witness what Dr. Anderson did with them. She said she was told that she was too young and would not understand such things.

The jury found Dr. Anderson guilty, and he was fined $500.



For more on pre-legalization abortion, see The Bad Old Days of Abortion

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Abortion history: The death of Nina Pierce

On February 15, 1925, Nina H. Pierce, a 22-year-old white woman, died at the Chicago Lying-In Hospital from complications of a criminal abortion believed to have been performed that day by Dr. Lucy Hagenow.

Hagenow was arrested the day Nina died, at the crime scene, as was Nina's husband, Logan Pierce.

Both of them were exonerated by the coroner on March 5, 1925. But on June 10, Hagenow was held to a Grand Jury on $25,000 bond, and Pierce released, by Judge Schulman.



For more on pre-legalization abortion, see The Bad Old Days of Abortion

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Anybody have access to Chicago newspaper archives?

I've been digging through the Homicide in Chicago database, and I've run into a some confusion.

All the reports I'd seen on Dr. Amenti Rongetti's death sentence, handed down in 1928, was that it was for the death of his abortion patient, Loretta Enders.

But the Homicide in Chicago Database entry on the case says something different. It mentions Loretta -- with "Dec. 11" as a note. But the victim is listed as "Baby Enders," dead November 16, 1927, the day of the abortion.

So now it's looking as if Rongetti was sentenced to die not for Loretta's death, but for the death of her baby.

Can anybody get to a library and check the Chicago newspaper archives and help me sort out what happened here?

Valentine's Day Murder

On this day, Valentine's Day, in 2001, abortionist John Baxter Hamilton bludgeoned his wife, Susan, to death in their Oklahoma home. He was sentenced to life without parole. Mrs. Hamilton, 55, had worked as a physician's assistant at her husband's abortion facility, Oklahoma Women's Clinic.

The day of the murder, one of Hamilton's patients had been at a hospital, sedated and ready for surgery, when Hamilton called and said he'd be arriving ten minutes early for surgery. But Hamilton was late, not arriving until 9:30. The patient had been left in a sedated state while staff awaited the doctor. Hamilton was more talkative than usual during surgery, explaining to a student nurse about anatomy and disease. He whistled at a nurse rather than calling her by name when he wanted the light moved.

Hamilton initially gave no reason for being late, but later told another doctor that he'd been late because he’d been shopping for a Valentine present for his wife. Records from a flower shop showed that Hamilton had paid for $158 worth of flowers on February 12, but did not come on Valentine's day to pick them up. A Valentine card, chocolates, and stuffed bear for Mrs. Hamilton were in the house; a Valentine card for Hamilton was found in the couple's Jaguar.

Evidently Hamilton went home after he'd finished the surgery. At 11 a.m., 911 got a non-specific trouble call from the home. When police arrived, they found the couple's cars, a white Corvette and a beige Jaguar, parked in front of the house. Inside, they found Hamilton, barefoot in the kitchen wearing a bloody sports coat, dress slacks, and dress shirt, but no tie. Hamilton's wife was found lying on the bathroom floor, bloody and nude, with a man's tie around her neck. Police believe Susan Hamilton had been dead for hours when her husband called 911.

Hamilton was kept in a patrol car outside his house until he was taken to the police station at 1 PM. He was interviewed for about five hours. Cops said the videotape showed that Hamilton would weep and act worried while police officers were in the room, then pace and stop crying when left alone.

Mrs. Hamilton had been strangled with a necktie, hit with a blunt object, and had her face slammed repeatedly onto the marble floor of the master bathroom of the couple's house. The attack had taken about two minutes. Jurors wept looking at autopsy photos of the hole in Mrs. Hamilton's skull. She evidently took three blows to the head. An expert believed that Mrs. Hamilton had attempted to remove the necktie from around her neck, but was “taken down almost immediately and spun onto her face.” Marks showed that she had injured her own neck with her fingernails attempting to rip off the necktie.

A defense expert admitted on cross examination that "the most probable" explanation for the blood spatter on Hamilton's shirt sleeve was that he'd beaten his wife over head with a blunt object. Blood on his shoe indicated that he had trod in a pool of blood. Hamilton held that he was covered with blood because he'd moved his wife to perform CPR and remove the tie from around her neck. He said his shoes had fallen off as he'd jumped over her body to assist her, and that he'd tried to put them back on and kicked them aside and ultimately moved them to another location.

Prosecutors said that Hamilton had fingernail scratches on his shoulders at the time of his arrest. No bloody footprints lead outside although bloody footprints were abundant in the house. Mrs. Hamilton's flesh and blood were found inside Hamilton's car; police believe they fell off his clothes and the blunt instruments as he took them to dispose of them.

Hamilton claimed that he'd gotten in the car, bloody from aiding his wife, when he realized that his car would block the ambulance, but that he was shaking too much to get the key in the ignition, but no footprints lead to the car, as would have been expected if his story was true. Hamilton also couldn't explain how, if he was bloody from trying to aid his wife, there was no blood on the door handle of the car, on the key, or on the outside of the car.

An investigator thought that the killer took a long shower, then pulled drain cleaner down to get rid of any blood in the drain.

The family's housekeeper said that a marble statue was missing from bathroom; it might have been the murder weapon. The housekeeper also said that on two occasions she'd seen bruises on Mrs. Hamilton.

Another woman, Mrs. Hamilton's friend, said that she and Mrs. Hamilton had shared their stories of being abused by their spouses over a five year period, and had joined other abused women in support group. Mrs. Hamilton had suspected that her husband was having an affair with a topless dancer, Alliena Aguirre. Mrs. Hamilton had found the dancer's number 60 times on Hamilton's cell phone bill. Aguirre, aka Nina, said she first went to Hamilton for an abortion in the early 1990s, but also saw him at his gynecology office. She denied that the two had an affair or any type of personal relationship. Aguirre testified that she had done table dances at two Oklahoma City clubs for Hamiliton. She said he paid her $100 and $80 for dances that ordinarily cost $20 each. She said that he called her 10 or more times a day. She said that on February 8, after Mrs. Hamilton learned of the phone calls, Hamilton wrote Aguirre a letter saying he could no longer be her doctor. During his trial, Hamilton claimed that Aguirre was a manic-depressive, suicidal patient and that he'd only been trying to help her.

The couple had discussed divorce two days before the murder. The couple had fought two months before the murder over Hamilton giving his son money behind Susan's back.

Read secular coverage here.

UPDATE: The link above expired, and some guy called Peter came complaining that I must have made the case up since he couldn't find it. Well, I Googled and found the following:

Murder trial for city doctor to begin Dec. 3

Plus these articles archived from The Oklahoman:

Doctor arrested in wife's death

Few details released on arrest of doctor

Doctor to attend wife's service

Slaying shocks neighborhood

Suspect loses bail appeal - Doctor charged in wife's death to remain in jail pending trial

Prosecutors say doctor abused wife

Daughter testifies slain woman was scared, upset

Colleagues say doctor was late for surgery on day wife was slain

Valentine's Day cards illustrate conflicts

Attack held intense violence

Autopsy photos in Hamilton trial make jurors cry

Doctor on trial tells of day wife was slain

Here is Hamilton's appeal.

There's this.

The Discovery Channel did an episode about the murder.

Does that help, Peter?

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A sentimental moment

For those of you who are "Little House" fans. Remember The Long Winter?

Here's the train they were waiting for:



This picture was taken in March.

(Okay, technically it's the plow train that was trying to get the other train through, but "the train they were waiting for" makes for a more dramatic moment.)

Illegal abortion by midwife: Anna Fazio

Anna Fazio, age 20, underwent an illegal abortion performed about February 2, 1929, at the Chicago home of midwife Marie Zwienczak. Anna died on February 13.

Zwienczak was arrested March 1, as recommended by the coroner. Stephanie Paczkiewicz was booked on February 23 as an accessory, but was not mentioned in the verdict.
Zwienczak was indictedfor homicide by a grand jury. She was tried, and was sentenced on June 20 to 14 years at Joliet Penitentiary. She appealed, but her sentence was affirmed by the Supreme Court.



For more on pre-legalization abortion, see The Bad Old Days of Abortion

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Here you go, Tlaloc!

We can still discuss kittens!

Paging Captain Obvious

News flash: Playboy pinups die young

Gosh, do you think? With the exception of poor Sharon Tate, who was minding her own business when the Manson Family slaughtered her and her unborn baby in a murder spree, we have a litany of women whose lifestyles ended predictably.

I'm not saying these women deserved to die tragic, premature deaths. I'm just saying that your mom isn't trying to be a killjoy when she tells you to choose your friends carefully, keep your pants on, and don't do drugs. She's wanting you to live to a happy, healthy, ripe old age.

A surprising discovery

I've been writing up the abortion cases from the Homicide in Chicago database. There I found a surprise. Dr. Amante Rongetti was implicated in the 1929 abortion death of Elizabeth Palumbo. Rongetti (then spelled "Amenti" Rongetti) had just been sentenced to die in the electric chair the year before for the criminal abortion death of Loretta Enders. Rongetti's attorney evidently was successful in his bid for a new trial. And it looks like Elizabeth Palumbo paid for this with her life.

Something I'm learning from writing up these cases is that both sides are being oversimplistic. The prochoicers mostly seem to be operating on the assumption that legalization took the quackery out of abortion by opening the field up to respectable physicians. Which we've seen hasn't exactly been the panacea it was supposed to be. But prolifers are being oversimplistic in thinking that just recriminalizing abortion will mean all the quacks get locked up. It was clear even to a jury that Rongetti had caused Loretta Enders' needless death, yet a year after they'd sentenced him to die for his crime, he was out and up to his old tricks.

We don't want to be locking up people who aren't guilty, but we also need to be sure that when the laws kick back in after Roe, that we also address cronyism (like the prosecutor's golfing buddy who beat the rap in spite of abundant evidence of his guilt).



For more on pre-legalization abortion, see The Bad Old Days of Abortion

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Busy day

Today, while searching the internet for more information about criminal abortionist Dr. Lucy Hagenow, I stumbled upon a motherlode: the Homicide in Chicago Interactive Database.

I did a search for "abortion", and have found at least fifteen pages of cases, ten cases per page.

My wrist is getting sore already from all the typing.

I add each case to the Cemetery of Choice as I add it to the web page. I've got my work cut out for me.

Two safe, legal anniversaries

Elise Kalat was 22 years old when she had an abortion sometime around February 10, 1987. Two days after the abortion, her bronchial tubes went into spasms and caused her to go into respiratory arrest. She died at Memorial Hospital in Worcester, Massachusetts on February 12, 1987.

****

Bonnie Fix, a mother of four, was admitted to Fresno Community Hospital on February 7, 1974. Doctors there performed an abdominal hysterectomy on Bonnie. Several days after her hysterectomy, Bonnie began to suffer bowel and lung problems. She suffered cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead on February 12. Codes used at the state registrar's office indicate that an abortion had been induced on Bonnie for medical reasons.

For more abortion deaths, visit the Cemetery of Choice:



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Interesting piece by Mark Crutcher

4 Politics

[W]hether it is caused by a shortage of providers or an increased cost for the procedure, the abortion rate falls like a blind roofer when access to abortion is reduced. That reality explains something many in the abortion industry have long lamented: the cost of an abortion has not significantly changed since Roe vs. Wade.

At a September 1997, National Abortion Federation Seminar, Colorado abortionist Warren Hern pointed out that he can only charge $15 more for an abortion today than fellow abortionist Milan Vuitch was charging in 1972. At another National Abortion Federation meeting held earlier in 1997, Hern was quoted as saying, "... if you raise your [abortion] fees $25 to meet the cost for having an ultrasound machine ... the patient load plummets."

CPCs are adding ultrasound machines all over the country and they're not charging women $25 a pop for ultrasounds. And an ultrasound machine is an elective tool for a CPC; it's not a medical necessity like it is for an abortion facility, where the doctor needs to verify the gestational age, the configuration of the woman's uterus (When you're seeing that many women, you'll encounter women with abnormalities of the reproductive tract; and these unusual configurations can cause complications if they're not adjusted for.), and, in later procedures, the orientation of the fetus.

This pricing phenomenon can't be attributed to normal competitive pressures. After all, the abortion industry openly admits that there is a critical shortage of abortionists, and as anyone with a basic understanding of economics knows, when the supply of something is short, the cost is supposed to go up.

The exception is when there is some outside influence that is powerful enough to neutralize price increases that would have otherwise occurred due to short supply. Where it exists, the marginality of the decision to buy can be such an outside influence, having the ability to easily trump a shortage-driven increase in cost.

And that's the key here. [T]he cost of an abortion has remained flat for the last 25 years only because the women who have them won't pay more.

In some abortion-industry conferences, speakers have tried to attribute abortion price stagnation to competition between clinics. However, the fact that prices don't rise when the number of clinics decrease exposes that argument as a lie. Even in areas where there is only one abortion clinic, prices don't increase appreciably.

That leads to an obvious conclusion: contrary to what the abortion industry has always claimed, the decision to abort is profoundly marginal. The data suggests that abortion decisions are more often driven by access issues (price and location) than desperation.

Does anybody have any good links on this phenomenon? I know that Nancy Howell Lee's "The Search for an Abortionist" found that, among women seeking illegal abortion, there was virtually no ambivalence. The women Howell spoke to had firmly, irrevocably, unquestioningly wanted abortions.

Whereas after legalization, Frederica Mathewes-Green held focus groups with women who had undergone abortions, and found a profound ambivalence.

Here's where Crutcher starts to get to the meat of the matter:

And not only has the abortion industry always known that access controls the abortion rate, they have also figured out that the abortion rate controls the legal status of abortion.

First, Crutcher addresses financial issues, noting at the outset that American politics are largely money-driven. The special interest that can pour the most money into an effort is more likely to be successful.

Crutcher points out that abortion advocacy efforts are largely judicial, rather than legislative. Grassroots efforts will get laws passed, a prochoice group will then challenge the laws and get them enjoined by the courts.

I suspect that if an independent analysis were done, it would reveal that political contributions from advocates for the two sides are roughly equal. If either side has an edge, it would more likely be the pro-life side - not necessarily because there are more of us, but because we appear more likely to be single-issue voters. In recent national elections, polls have shown that among people who say that the abortion issue alone drives their voting decisions, twice as many vote pro-life as vote pro-choice. It would not be unreasonable to assume that contributions mirror voting-at least to some degree.

That still doesn't answer the question of where the abortion industry gets the money to consistently outspend us in the political arena.

The answer is that they get it from the women who have abortions. Let's say that a fifteen-year-old girl goes into an abortion clinic and gives the abortionist $350 .... Most of that money goes to pay salaries, taxes, overhead, profit, etc. However, every abortionist knows that if his political defenders are not successful, the pro-lifers will put him out of business. Therefore, he is going to pour some of that girl's money into the political machine that's trying to keep abortion legal. That way, the next girl can come in and give him money ..., and so on, and so on. In effect, pro-abortion political activists function as a trade organization for the abortion industry.

Operation Rescue West recently had a long hard look at how George Tiller put money into the political arena, and the benefits he's reaped therefrom.

Crutcher turns next to philosophy.

When someone participates in an activity that they feel is morally justifiable, they are generally comfortable defending it to others who may believe it is wrong. However, when someone does something in spite of a belief that it is wrong, they are often extremely defensive about it. .... And the greater the sense that one has violated his own moral belief system, the more strongly this sensitivity is felt. ....

This same dynamic also impacts the political arena. When a candidate for office takes a pro-life position, voters with abortion experiences hear the candidate calling them murderers. So does that make them more likely or less likely to vote for that candidate?

Crutcher postulates that people who have been involved in an abortion are therefore likely to almost reflexively reject a candidate that rejects abortion. I'd have to disagree with him to some extent on this: I think that if the person is still defensive about the abortion, he or she will likely reject a pro-life politician. But post-abortion women are among the most vehement and adamant of prolifers, and they'll likely reject any abortion-supporting politician and reject a politician who supports abortion.

Crutcher goes on to his "political conclusion":

It’s time for the pro-life movement to accept certain realities. First, neither the church nor the Republican party is going to help us. More often than not, they are part of the problem, not the solution.

I think trying to get the church involved politically is a mistake. The job of the church is to address sin, not to organize political movements. The job of the church is to encourage virtue and discourage sin (which will lower the rate of unwed or adulterous pregnancy, which contribute immensely to the abortion rate), to encourage trust in God (which will reduce the frequency with which people commit the sin of abortion out of panic), offer practical help and moral support (known to ease women's fears and help them to reject abortion), and pray, pray, pray.

As for the Republican Party, it exists, like any other political party, to perpetuate itself. As long as a prolife politician gets an edge at the polls, there will be no real motivation to end abortion. Why end a problem that gains you an edge at the polls?

Second, this is a war and .... the first rule of war is that the goal is not to kill your opponents, but to destroy their ability to continue the fight.

[O]ur opponents’ ability to continue fighting comes from a high abortion rate. That is what fuels their political machine. As long as they have $64,000 an hour to draw on, and the potential for at least 4,000 new pro-abortion voters every day, the legal status of abortion will never change. That is simply too much inertia for us to overcome.

Compound that with their absolute stranglehold on the American media, and the idea that we can return legal protection to the unborn without first lowering the abortion rate is seen for what it really is ... utterly laughable.

I'm not going to go into any lengthy analysis. I'm just bringing this up for discussion.

I will, however, say that I'd love to see abortion recriminalized, but I am not fool enough to think that this alone can reduce abortion to the bare minimum human effort can reduce it to. (As long as there are human beings, some of them will persist in committing atrocities, including abortion.) And the ultimate goal needs to be reducing abortion to the bare minimum that human efforts can reduce it to.

Search for Lili Dajani

This Week in Gang Land

Police are again investigating an unsolved murder for hire, possibly contracted by retired FBI agent R. Lindley DeVecchio. Former abortionist Eliezer "Eli" Shkolnik, 52, was shot to death December 3, 1980 in the vestibule of a building his parents owned. Shkolnik had been shot in the head, and his killer left behind $1500 in cash and Shkolnik's expensive gold jewelry. The former abortionist was evidently serving as an informant in an IRS investigation into gangland activities.

Shkolnik's license had been revoked in 1976 due to conditions at his Central Women's Center. Health officials closed the facility due to allegations of flies in the operating rooms, soiled and blood-stained equipment, dirty oxygen masks and unclean recovery rooms.

Shkolnik either re-opened his facility or he had another one. Lili Dajani, a former beauty queen, had been Shkolnik's business partner and had worked as a nurse/receptionist at an abortion clinic Shkolnik had run, both before and after he'd lost his license. The two of them became lovers, and at some point, Shkolnik had transferred full ownership of the clinic to Dajani.

Dajani was also having an affair with gang boss Gregory "The Grim Reaper" Scarpa. There was evidently some sort of financial tug-of-war over the abortion clinic as well as jealousy over Dajani.

Some time before the murder, Shkolnik, and Shkolnik had moved in with his parents. Shkolnik spoke on the phone with his son, saying, “I’m finally going to get the business back.”

Other sources:

• The G-Man and the Hit Man
  
• Mole's New Slay Shocker
  
• Full Circle: Escape from Baghdad and the Return
  

Coma after abortion

Another search.

Venus Ortiz was left in a coma after her 1993 abortion at National Abortion Federation member Eastern Women's Center. She remained comatose until her death December 16, 1998 at the age of 29. Dawn Ravenelle was 13 years old when her abortion at Eastern left her in a coma in 1985; she died a few weeks later.

Angela Scott and Deloris Smith, both teens, were left in fatal comas within an hour of each other at National Abortion Federation member Atlanta Women's Pavillion in 1979. Angela died in about a week; Deloris lingered for months before her death.



Catherine Pierce, the 27-year-old mother of a 11-year-old daughter, died in 1989 after six months in a coma. Her abortion had been botched at NAF member Atlanta Surgi-Center.

Seventeen-year-old Deborah Lozinski had languished for two months in a coma, hospitalized after an abortion at Medical Care Center in Woodbridge, New Jersey in 1985.

Suzanne Logan was left in a coma after her 1989 abortion at Maryland's Hillview abortion clinic. Suzanne awoke from her coma paralyzed and unable to speak. She remained institutionalized until her death in 1992.

Jacqueline Reynolds was left comatose by her abortion at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta on August 27, 1986. She died on September 5.

Mitsue Mohar went to Pacolma Lutheran Hospital in Los Angeles County for a D&C abortion on August 5, 1975. After the abortion, Mitsue went into convulsions then lapsed into a coma. She died on September 10 without ever regaining consciousness.

Robin Wells,mother of three children ages 6, 4, and 2, went for an abortion at Akron Center for Reproductive Health on July 15, 1981. She went into cardiac arrest and remained in a coma until her death on August 2.

Yvonne Tanner, a 22-year-old mother of one had an abortion performed July 10, 1984 at Inglewood; Yvonne went into a coma immediately after the abortion, and died August 14, 1984.

"Judy" Roe was a 42-year-old mother of four when she chose safe and legal abortion in 1970. Judy underwent the procedure, but went into cardiac arrest. Her heart was started again, but she remained in a coma for six days until her death on July 12.

Wilma Harris underwent a legal abortion June 15, 1974 at the hands of abortion guru Milan Vuitch. Vuitch and his staff had allowed Wilma to lapse into a coma and lie unattended for 12 hours before transferring her to the hospital. She died five days later.

Eurice Agbagaa, a 26-year-old immigrant from Ghana, went to Abram Zelikman for an abortion on January 7, 1989. Zelikman left his bleeding patient in the care of an untrained receptionist. Eurice lapsed into a coma, and died January 15.

Glenda Davis, age 31, mother of two, said that she underwent an abortion by Robert Hanson at Aaron Family Planning March 11, 1989. She fell into a coma and died three days later.

Cassandra Bleavins, a 20-year-old clerk, had an abortion performed on her at John Wesley Hospital on September 2, 1971. She bled heavily after the abortion, and was treated both as an inpatient and outpatient before slipping into a coma on September 17. She died the next day.

Lynn McNair, age 24, was 23 weeks pregnant when she was injected with saline by Dr. Edward Rubin at Jewish Memorial Hospital. She went into contractions and slipped into a coma. She died March 23.

"Beth" Roewas 23 years old when she traveled from Massachusetts to New York for an abortion in 1971. Instead of the amniotic sac, the saline went into Beth's bloodstream. Beth immediately began to have seizures and went into a coma. She was pronounced dead on December 29.

"Penny" Roe, a Colorado woman, drank pennyroyal oil to try to perform a safe, "natural" abortion. She went into a coma and died seven days later.

Laniece Dorsey, age 17, lapsed into a coma during an abortion at a Family Planning Associates Medical Group facility in Orange County, California, on February 6, 1986. She died later that day.

"Ellen" Roe underwent an abortion November 29, 1983, performed by Andre Nehorayoff. At 5:10 AM on December 3, Ellen was rushed to an emergency room. She was already in a coma upon admission. An hour and 10 minutes later, she was pronounced dead.

Christi Stile remains in a vegetative state after going into a coma during an abortion at a National Abortion Federation clinic in Colorado.

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Search for Robert Dale Crist

Dr. Robert Dale Crist is the guy who performed the fatal abortions on Diane Boyd (a 19-year-old mentally disabled woman pregnant due to rape; he gave her drugs that caused a fatal interaction with her regular medications); Latachie Veal (a 17-year-old girl sent home to bleed to death); and Nichole Williams (a 22-year-old who died of disseminated intravascular coagulopathy).

Crist also is faulted with botching a tubal ligation on 27-year-old mother of four Linda McCown, leaving her in a coma. Linda's family said that Crist put an oxygen tube into Linda's stomach instead of into her lungs following the procedure he performed on her on November 2, 2000 at a Planned Parenthood in Overland Park, Kansas. I've sent an email to Jim Sedlak at STOPP to find out if he has any update on this young woman's condition.

Crist is one of the abortionist who hems and haws and insists that abortionists are, by and large, too clueless to understand laws banning The Procedure Formerly Known as Prince.

Seeking Alberto Hodari

Again, ask and it shall be given unto you. This is what I have on Alberto Hodari:

Hodari is blamed for the fatal abortions on Tamia Russell (pictured) and Chivon Williams.

The following information is about lawsuits filed against Hodari.

Pamela L. alleged that she underwent an abortion by Hodari (pictured) and/or Dr. Roumell and/or other physicians. (Since it's not unusual for abortion facilities to keep a woman in the dark about who staff members are, it's not unusual for a woman to be forced to file suit against every doctor associated with the facility that did her abortion.) Whichever of them did her abortion failed to properly determine gestational age, failed to remove all of the placenta, and failed to detect Pamela's incomplete abortion. Pamela required further hospitalization and surgery. (Wayne County Circuit Court Case No. 86-627445)

Joann B. alleged that she was diagnosed pregnant by Hodari and/or staff at Northland Women's Medical Center. No ultrasound or other verification was done to verify that the positive pregnancy test was accurate. Joann underwent an abortion by Hodari on June 17, 1985. She suffered a perforated uterus and permanent injury, and required surgery. After her ordeal, Joann learned that she had not actually been pregnant. (Oakland County Circuit Court Civil Action No. 86 320211)

Bonita L. alleged that she underwent an abortion by by Hodari on September 5, 1984 at Womancare of Lakewood. Bonita was 9 weeks pregnant. About 30 minutes post-procedure, Bonita experienced bleeding and cramping, and was treated with Ergotrate. Pamela experienced shock and continued bleeding, and was "ultimately transported to Bon Secours Hospital." There, surgery found a 3 cm uterine perforation, bleeding from the right uterine artery, and perforation of the broad ligament. Bonita's injuries were so severe that the surgeon had to remove her uterus. (Wayne County Circuit Court Case No. 85-504476)

Other suits were filed against Womancare and other abortionists working for Hodari there.

Christine B. alleged an incomplete 1983 abortion at Hodari's Womancare. Valerie H. alleged failure to diagnose her ectopic pregnancy in a 1982 abortion by Sasinee Vibhasiri at Woman Care/Detroit Memorial Hospital, and in follow-up by A. Hodari at Detroit Memorial Hospital. Karen W. alleged that she underwent an abortion by Lee Stevenson at the direction of Hodari on September 9, 1980, at Detroit Memorial Hospital; she was discharged from the hospital September 15, and faulted Hodari's staff with failure to notify her of risks and complications.

In spite of all this, the Michigan medical board lists no disciplinary actions against Hodari.

My RealChoice page on Hodari is here.