Bill Recommended by Gosnell Grand Jury Passes PA House

The Pennsylvania House has taken another step forward to protect women and babies from the horrors that happened in Kermit Gosnell’s West Philadelphia abortion center.

House Bill 587, which passed the House on Tuesday, December 17, would increase the penalty for impersonating a doctor in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Matt Baker, R-Bradford, Tioga, is based on a recommendation Gosnellmade by the grand jury that indicted abortionist Kermit Gosnell in connection with the murder of infants and the death of a female patient.

Gosnell is serving three consecutive life sentences in prison, following his murder conviction. Several of Gosnell’s staff members had no medical training at all. Two of his employees, Stephen Massof and Eileen O’Neill, both practiced as doctors at Gosnell’s center, but neither of them had a medical license.

The Pennsylvania Senate will now consider the bill.

Abortionist, Murderer Kermit Gosnell Gets 30 More Years on Drug Charges

The numbers just keep stacking up in Kermit Gosnell’s crimes.

This spring, he was sentenced three times to life in prison for murdering three newborn babies and for his involvement in the death of a woman inside his filthy abortion center. He also was convicted of dozens of other charges involving his horrific abortion practices in Philadelphia.

On Monday, Jangosnell40uary 16, the former abortionist also was sentenced for the original crimes that caught investigators’ attention — illegal drug distribution.

According to National Right to Life News:

“Gosnell fought the drug charges—charges that he made a fortune writing bogus prescriptions for thousands of OxyContin, Percocet , and Xanax pills, on top of the fortune he made performing late, late abortions almost entirely on women of color.”

Read more here.

Planned Parenthood’s Priorities and a Sad Irony

It’s ironic how timely things work out sometimes. Take yesterday for example.

Here in Pennsylvania, a group of pro-abortion advocates introduced a series of bills about women’s issues. Fortunately, most of them dealt with other women’s issues and left the abortion alone. A new bill proposing a state-wide buffer zone was the exception.abortion-is-not-healthcare

Some of the bills were written to protect women from discrimination and violence, while another bill would require employers to provide a private space for mothers who breast feed.

I found it ironic that Planned Parenthood was among the groups touting this legislative package, because that very same day I also was looking over the organization’s annual report, which had just been released. Read more here.

The report revealed that their priorities were much different from what the Pennsylvania Planned Parenthood advocates were touting to the press.

According to the Planned Parenthood 2012-2013 report:

– Cancer screening services dropped 14%
– Prenatal services declined by 32%
– Breast exams declined by 34% since 2009
– For every one adoption referral, Planned Parenthood performed 149 abortions
– Abortions made up about 94% of Planned Parenthood’s pregnancy services

While it is true that Planned Parenthood’s abortion numbers also dropped by 2%, the data points to abortion as the focus of their industry. (Its revenues were at an all-time high, fueled by 327,166 abortions.)

It’s sadly ironic that Planned Parenthood is lobbying for lactating mothers even as the majority of its clinic income comes from depriving women of their babies through abortion.

Study Confirms Increased Risk of Breast Cancer after Abortion

Women deserve to know the truth about the risks of abortion to their health.

We must never forget that abortion is wrong, first and foremost, because it kills the life of an innocent human being. But it’s also important to know that abortion is dangerous for women, too.

From what I understand, the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Roe v. Wade picbreastcancer8was partially based on the notion that abortion is safer than childbirth.

Yet, more and more new research is proving how truly risky abortion can be to a woman’s health.

According to LifeNews.com, a new study from China showed that just one abortion increased the risk of breast cancer by 44 percent. For a woman who has two abortions, that risk nearly doubles to 76 percent.

Learn more here about the science behind the abortion breast cancer link.

Sadly, the mainstream news media turn a blind eye to this new research. Some even toss off these studies as biased or insignificant.

But as the evidence mounts, it’s getting harder and harder to deny how bad abortion is for women.

‘Love Says It Is Good That You Exist’

The other day I stumbled on a new blog and found a beautiful quote by Joseph Pieper, a German Catholic philosopher.

“Love says it is good that you exist.”

It really struck me. The blog post wasn’t about abortion, but the quote really says mother_and_childa lot about the issue.

How many times have you heard abortion portrayed as a compassionate choice for the child?

He may be born into poverty. She may be abused. He may never be able to function on his own. She may be bullied because she’s different. He may die right after he is born. She may never enjoy life like other children because of a disability. Abortion is the compassionate approach for these children; we don’t want them to suffer.

It may seem ridiculous to you and me, but many people see abortion this way.

When you describe love the way Pieper did, you acknowledge the hardships of life. Yes, there is suffering and pain. No, no child’s life is perfect.

But if we want to be a loving society, shouldn’t we start by first protecting a child’s very existence?

PA Abortion Center Loses License Because of Ties to Brigham

New details have emerged confirming that a Philadelphia abortion facility lost its license and can no longer perform abortions because of its ties to notorious abortionist Steven Brigham.

BrighamPhilly

The state found evidence that the facility failed to report affiliations with Brigham when it completed the official Abortion Facility Registration form. Had these affiliations been disclosed, the Department of Health would not have approved the opening of the facility.

Brigham lost his license to practice medicine in Pennsylvania, and he is not allowed to own or be involved with any abortion facilities in the Commonwealth.

The state investigation of the Philadelphia center revealed that it was giving patients the hotline for American Women’s Services, a chain of abortion centers owned by Brigham in New Jersey and Maryland.

The state also found a connection between Integrity’s abortionist, Eric Yahav, and Brigham’s Voorhees, N.J., abortion center.

According to the PA Department of Health, “Integrity failed to disclose Dr. Yahav’s affiliation and/or business relationship with Brigham and/or American Women’s Services in its Abortion Control Act Registration Form.”

Further, this “is grounds for revocation of Department approval for Integrity to operate an abortion facility …” according to the Department.

State Shuts Down Philadelphia Abortion Center

After a thorough investigation, Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration is taking away the license of an abortion facility in Philadelphia alleged to have ties to a notorious abortionist.

The abortion facility, Integrity Family Health, was granted a state permit earlier this fall. However, evidence later came to light that abortionist Steven Brigham was connected with the facility.

BrighamPhilly

Michael Ciccocioppo, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, said, “We commend Governor Corbett and his staff for taking this matter so seriously and investigating it so thoroughly. Even though officials say Brigham was not personally performing abortions at the facility, this action is good news for women and their preborn babies across the Commonwealth.”

The facility’s license has been taken away, and it may no longer perform abortions at this time.

Published reports say Brigham once ran an abortion ring with 15 facilities in four states, including four in Pennsylvania. His Pennsylvania facilities, in Erie, Allentown, State College, and Pittsburgh, have since closed.

It Only Takes a Moment to Share

This week as I write, I think back to my college years.

And I must admit that the famous quote by Edmund Burke describes my college self well: “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”

I did nothing. That was my problem.

Pro-life college students spend a summer at the National Right to Life Academy.

Pro-life college students spend a summer at the National Right to Life Academy.

Sure, if you looked at my schedule, you could hardly say I was lazy. I held down up to three jobs at once. I commuted to college daily – 40 minutes one way. I took a full course load and made the dean’s list, volunteered at my church, did some freelance editing, and tried to spend some quality time with my boyfriend, friends and family.

But I did nothing when professors talked about the need for more diversity and acceptance, and then criticized and mischaracterized pro-lifers. I simply sat in the back of the classroom, feeling angry and alone.

Now, I wonder what would have happened if I had spoken up. Perhaps others would have felt encouraged to share their differing points of view, too. Perhaps I would have found others who shared my opinion and encouraged them to speak. Perhaps I would have offered a perspective that someone never heard before. Or perhaps I wouldn’t have found any like-minded peers. Perhaps I would have been mocked.

I can only guess at what could have been, but I am sure of one thing: I missed an opportunity. I ignored one of the greatest chances I had to talk about abortion with an audience that was only hearing one perspective. That missing perspective could have come from me.

This fall, I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to speak to several college pro-life groups. It’s been encouraging to interact with the students and hear about their campus outreach – whether it’s starting conversations while handing out cupcakes, organizing debates on abortion, or setting up a diaper drive. These students are doing amazing things!

As I see all the time and energy they’re putting in to saving babies and helping women, I can’t help but regret the opportunities I missed in college.

True, I didn’t have much free time. But I didn’t need to form a club or a rally. I just needed to take the opportunity to comment when the conversations arose, to ask a question when one side of the issue was missing.

Like the amazing pro-life college students I’ve met recently, we need to make time to be advocates for life. We need to stand up for the truth – that preborn babies are being killed in their mothers’ wombs at a mind-numbing rate.

But when our schedules seem overwhelming, we can still advocate in small ways. We can refuse to waste an opportunity.

Carpe diem!

Notorious Abortionist May Be Back in Pennsylvania

A new Pennsylvania abortion facility is under investigation because of possible ties to a notorious abortionist.

Steven Brigham has a dubious reputation for harming women and skirting the law. His license to practice medicine has been yanked in Pennsylvania and numerous other states. He is barred from doing abortions in Pennsylvania.images

However, news reports indicate that Brigham may be trying to slip back in through a new abortion facility in Philadelphia called the Integrity Family Health. The facility applied for and was granted a state permit earlier this fall.

According to reports, the toll free number for Brigham’s multi-state abortion business will set up appointments for patients at the new Pennsylvania center.

The Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation is grateful that the Corbett Administration is looking into this matter in the interest of protecting women’s health and safety.

Brigham has a long and sordid history of performing illegal, late-term abortions on viable babies, botching abortions and injuring women, using unsterile equipment, and working in filthy conditions.

Published reports say Brigham once ran an abortion ring with 15 facilities in four states, including four in Pennsylvania. His Pennsylvania facilities, in Erie, Allentown, State College, and Pittsburgh, have since closed.

Journalist Describes Gosnell Trial for Bucks County Pro-Lifers

On October 15, newspaper columnist J.D. Mullane spoke to a packed hall at the parish of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Doylestown, about his experiences at the trial of Philadelphia abortionist Kermit Gosnell.

Gosnell was convicted in May of three murder charges, 21 felony counts of illegal late-term abortion, and 211 counts of violating the 24-hour informed consent law.

J.D. Mullane

J.D. Mullane

Mullane told the crowd that his coverage of the Gosnell trial began somewhat unintentionally. He typically only covers local news stories for his newspapers, the Bucks County Courier Times, The Intelligencer, and the Burlington County (NJ) Times.

But a light schedule one day back in April prompted Mullane to attend the trial in center-city Philadelphia. He was looking for a local angle, because some of the women who sought Gosnell’s later-term abortions were from his area.

Mullane called ahead to the Philadelphia courthouse for press credentials, but was told that he could just show up. Somewhat mystified by this lack of competition for a press seat, he was later surprised to see that almost all of the courtroom seats designated for the press were empty. He snapped a cell-phone photo of the empty seats and posted it on Twitter. The picture went viral, and only then did the media begin to pay a little more attention to the trial.

Mullane told the audience that, as the testimony unfolded, it was bad enough to hear descriptions of the routine practices in Gosnell’s abortion mill, how filthy is always was, and how he discriminated against ethnic women by providing even worse than the standard “care” for them.

Additional trial testimony and images were “beyond any Hollywood horror,” including the courtroom presence of one of the bloody chairs where women in late-term pregnancy waited for lethal doses of Gosnell’s drugs to kill their babies before delivery. These drugs were sometimes injected by an untrained 15-year-old girl!

Other grisly testimony included descriptions of the horrendous techniques for murdering born-alive babies after delivery if they survived the toxic drug-brew, and gruesome answers by Gosnell’s staff. For example, a local detective testified that he asked the abortion staff why Gosnell kept jars at home containing remains from aborted babies. Staff members had replied that Gosnell owned a house at the Jersey shore and often used these babies’ remains to bait crab traps set in the nearby ocean waters.

But of course, a “good” abortionist doesn’t do those things. He kills children in a “nice environment.” One such “good” abortionist testified at the Gosnell trial that during his own 30 years of practice; he alone had performed 40,000 abortions.

Since being convicted in May, Gosnell has been interviewed by only one reporter, Steve Volk, from Philadelphia Magazine.

Mullane said he has covered many murder trials, and, in his experience, all murderers have the same empty and evil look in their eyes. He said that he would like to interview Gosnell to see if he has that same look. If Mullane could only ask one question, he said he would definitely ask, “Did Allyson Schwartz ever refer women to your facility for late-term abortions?”

Schwartz is a candidate for governor in Pennsylvania and has been very quiet about her involvement with Kermit Gosnell. Before holding office, she ran an abortion center just a few miles from Gosnell’s. Thus far, she has been unwilling to answer this question, which has been posed to her on several occasions.

Currently, Gosnell writes poetry in prison. How ironic when he is thus far blind to the evil that he and other baby killers have flagrantly inflicted upon our society since 1973 as the lives of more than 55 million infants have been ended by the legalized murder that is abortion.

Only by learning and sharing will we shine light on the evil darkness of abortion mills everywhere and end the death that always occurs there whether the conditions in these mills are filthy or sterile and regardless of when the abortion occurs.

JD Mullane’s public commitment in words and pictures helps us to share these truths; we’re grateful for his work and its impact.

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This article was written by Pat Dowling and Charol Abrams, pro-life volunteers with Bucks County Right to Life, which sponsored the event.