Witnesses said he would either snip their spinal cords, stab a surgical instrument into their heads or twist their heads off with his hands.

The Texas Department of State Health Services began its criminal investigation of the abortion doctor after the release of an Operation Rescue video, containing interviews with former employees of the doctor’s clinic. The former employees accuse Karpen of delivering live babies during third-trimester abortions and said he would either snip their spinal cords, stab a surgical instrument into their heads or twist their heads off with his hands.

Karpen’s former assistant, Deborah Edge, said sometimes the fetus was so big he would have to pull it out of the womb in pieces.

“Sometimes he couldn’t get the fetus out… he would yank pieces – piece by piece – when they were oversize,” Edge explained.  “And I’m talking about the whole floor dirty. I’m talking about me drenched in blood.”

Two other ex-employees featured on the Operation Rescue video, Gigi Aguliar and Krystal Rodriguez, also described the horrific scenes at the Aaron Women’s Clinic in Houston in 2011.

It is likely similar stories will come out of the two other abortion clinics run by Karpen in Texas.

Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said he had read the allegations ‘with disgust’ before calling for a full investigation into Karpen and his clinics.

This new investigation comes on the heels of this week’s conviction of Philadelphia abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, who was convicted of 3 counts of first degree murder for the violent deaths of late-term children born alive.  Gosnell’s trial nationally exposed the gruesome side of the abortion business, and drew fierce criticism from both pro-life and pro-choice camps.

Employee Interviews
WARNING: VIDEO CONTAINS GRAPHIC CONTENT.

Read More at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2325786/Douglas-Karpen-Second-house-horrors-abortion-clinic-investigated-Texas.html.

Philadelphia abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell was found guilty today of first degree murder in three of four infant deaths.

Gosnell was also convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the death of a female patient who was given a lethal dose of sedatives and pain killers in 2009.

Gosnell, 72, could face the death penalty.

Earlier today, on their 10th day of deliberations, the Philadelphia jury of the Kermit Gosnell murder trial sent a note to the judge stating they were hung on two counts. Gosnell is facing more than 200 criminal charges at this time, and it has not been revealed which two counts were at issue.

The judge had ordered the jury to resume deliberations.

Gosnell is being held in solitary confinement at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility in Philadelphia awaiting his verdict.

Read News Alert

 National Coverage:

Read the full CBS report here.

ABC coverage here.

Fox News coverage here.

Kermit Gosnell got rich performing more than 16,000 abortions over a 30-year career, charging nearly $3,000 cash from mostly poor women and teens for illegal, late-term abortions. During that time Philadelphia authorities paid little attention to the clinic, despite complaints. City leaders didn’t want regulations of any kind to keep women from getting abortions. Even health regulations. Prosecutors said Gosnell’s clinic had not been inspected since the early 1990s.

But now the stories of the “house of horrors” have come to light in a courtroom, and Gosnell’s life is in the hands of the 12 jurors now in deliberation.

For the past two months, jurors of the Kermit Gosnell trial have watched a parade of testimony and evidence portraying a filthy, poorly-staffed, and unregulated abortion business where one women died while receiving treatment and the cries of babies born alive were cut short by scissors to the backs of their necks.

The five men and seven women are now deliberating the charges against the 72-year-old abortionist, who faces four counts of first degree murder for babies born alive, and one count of third degree murder in the death of Karnamaya Mongar, 41, who died after she was given an overdose of Demerol by Gosnell’s unqualified staff.

Gosnell also faces one count of Infanticide for the death of Baby A, 24 felony counts of violating the Abortion Control Act by doing abortions over 24 weeks, 226 counts of violating the Abortion Control Act’s 24-hour informed consent provisions, and a plethora of charges related to Conspiracy, Corrupt Organizations, and Racketeering. He faces 258 counts in all.

Gosnell has not testified so far, but might take the stand when the trial moves to the penalty phase if he is convicted.

Barely an hour into deliberations on Tuesday, the jury asked its first question about charges against former clinic employee Eileen O’Neill, who is also on trial. She is charged with six counts of theft for allegedly billing as a doctor when she was not licensed. Her lawyer has argued that O’Neill worked under Gosnell’s supervision. The question suggests the jury may be starting their deliberations with O’Neill’s case.

Rep. James Lankford from Oklahoma recited the defense attorney’s stance that the children would have died anyway, so snipping their spines should not count as a murder. He challenged that position with two questions: “One,” he said, “What is the difference of 3 feet between delivering a child and snapping their spinal cord or killing them in the womb?” And second, “Why would we do this to children in the first place?”

Here are more statements made by our Representatives in Congress Friday:

Rep. James Lankford (Oklahoma)

In Philadelphia, an abortion-clinic murder trial is about to go to the jury next week for the death of four children and one adult.

The one adult was killed by an overdose of drugs that she was given during the abortion procedure. The four children represent many children that were delivered completely, and then their spinal cord was cut while they were outside the womb.

The defense has said those children would have died anyway. They were small. The drugs they had been given would have killed them already in the surgical destruction that happened during the actual abortion procedure. So those children don’t matter. They shouldn’t count as a murder. They wouldn’t have lived anyway.

I’m going to ask two questions. One is: What is the difference of 3 feet between delivering a child and snapping their spinal cord or killing them in the womb? And the second is: Why would we do this to children in the first place?

I’d love for you to meet Olivia. She goes to high school with my daughter. She was born in 1996 at 1 pound, 2 ounces, just over 20 weeks at delivery, the very same as these children that were killed that day and many days in that Philadelphia abortion clinic.

We have got to stand for life. We cannot be a Nation that does this to our children.

Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (Nebraska)

Mr. Speaker, sometimes it’s just so bad that we don’t even want to look at it. Sometimes it’s just so awful we want to turn our face away. But we can’t.

Shayquana Abrams was a 17-year-old when she went to see a doctor named Gosnell. He performed an abortion on her. Afterwards, she was diagnosed with a grapefruit-sized abscess and a clot near her heart. It took her 2 years to recover. She was just a child, Mr. Speaker.

This Dr. Gosnell waged his own private war on women. And for what? For profit.

Now, thankfully, he’s on trial; and, thankfully, more and more people are learning about this.

Maybe, Mr. Speaker, we just don’t want to look because it is so awful. Maybe it’s challenging our very premises, our very understanding of what this choice for abortion really leads to. But we have to look, and we have to recognize how deeply we are inflicting wounds upon our very selves.

Mr. Speaker, women deserve better. Our Nation can do better. Why not help young women like Shayquana and let the healing begin?

Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minnesota)

I thank God for the men who stood up here today to stand for women and against violence against women.

Rep. Marlin Stutzman (Indiana)

Mr. Speaker, the Gosnell case must give us a moment of reflection. Have 40 years of abortion-on-demand seared our national conscience and given us false refuge behind euphemisms like ‘choice’?

More than 3,000 unborn children die in abortion clinics every day in this country. While none of these deaths attracts the headlines of the Gosnell case, each loss is a tragedy.

Each of these defenseless babies are just as innocent as Gosnell’s victims, just as human as you and I, and just as precious as our own children.

There is no moral distinction between killing a baby five minutes after birth or ending her life five minutes—or even five days—before delivery.

In the coming weeks, more questions will be asked—who referred patients to Gosnell’s house of horrors and what can be learned from these atrocities?

Today, we all ought to re-examine our national conscience.

In total, 19 members turned attention to Gosnell on the House floor, asking important questions:

Marlin Stutzman (@RepStutzman)
Diane Black (@RepDianeBlack)
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (@RosLehtinen)
Bill Johnson (@RepBillJohnson)
Dennis Ross, (@RepDennisRoss)
Chris Smith (@RepChrisSmith)
Tim Huelskamp, (@CongHuelskamp)
Jeff Fortenberry (@JeffFortenberry)
Keith Rothfus (@KeithRothfus)
Todd Rokita (@ToddRokita)
Michele Bachmann (@MicheleBachmann)
Kerry Bentivolio (@RepKerryB)
James Lankford (@RepLankford)
Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise)
Paul Gosar (@RepGosar)
Tim Walberg (@RepWalberg)
Phil Roe (@DrPhilRoe)
Scott Perry (@RepScottPerry)
Sean Duffy (@RepSeanDuffy)

All the videos from last Thursday’s one-minute speeches on Gosnell can be viewed here.

Be sure to thank your Representative.

Source: http://www.nationalreview.com/346937/kermit-gosnell-and-coherence-about-life

Barbara Willke, who was often considered the godmother of the modern-day pro-life movement, has passed away.

Willke, along with her husband Jack, a medical doctor, crisscrossed the nation in the 1960s and 1970s teaching people about the fight for life and helping set up some of the first state and local Right to Life groups combating abortion before and after the infamous Roe v. Wade decision.

With great sadness, Cincinnati Right to Life and pro-life advocates across the country are mourning her loss today. Willke served as co-founder along with her husband and as chairman of the organization for 28 years. She died peacefully Sunday night at Good Samaritan Hospital in Cincinnati, after suffering a severe head injury due to a fall. Funeral arrangements are pending.

“Mrs. Willke was a woman of courage and intelligence whose lifelong commitment to preserving the sanctity of human life is a moving legacy,” said Paula Westwood, Executive Director Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati. “No one can fill her shoes.”

Barbara Willke was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and internationally known author, lecturer, and expert in human sexuality. She held B.S. and R.N. degrees from the University of Cincinnati, College of Nursing & Health, plus graduate studies at University of Dayton.

Mother of six, grandmother of 22, foster mother of several teenagers, Barbara headed the Department at the College of Nursing for five years before her full-time career as wife and mother.

Her husband, Dr. John Willke, is past president of National Right to Life, president, Life Issues Institute and president emeritus, International Right to Life Federation. They would have been married for 65 years this June.

With Dr. Willke, Barbara co-authored twelve books on human sexuality and abortion. Together they created audio and visual materials that were proven to be basic teaching tools throughout the world. Their materials have been translated into 30 languages on all five continents. She and Dr. Willlke frequently appeared on radio and TV shows. They have spoken in 64 different countries.

“Barbara was always a joy to be with, and the work she did in the movement helped lay the foundation for decades of life-saving activity,” said Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life. “We will miss her, but we will carry her spirit with us and build on her work!”

Mrs. Willke was awarded honorary doctorates from St. Mary-of-the-Woods College and, along with Dr. Willke, Cincinnati’s Xavier University.

Congressman Henry Hyde’s words bring to mind Barbara Willke:

When the time comes, as it surely will, when we face that awesome moment, the final judgment, I’ve often thought, as Fulton Sheen wrote, that it is a terrible moment of loneliness. You have no advocates, you are there alone standing before God — and a terror will rip your soul like nothing you can imagine. But I really think that those in the pro-life movement will not be alone. I think there’ll be a chorus of voices that have never been heard in this world but are heard beautifully and clearly in the next world — and they will plead for everyone who has been in this movement. They will say to God, ‘Spare him, because he loved us!’

Funeral Information

The viewing for Barbara Willke will be Thursday, April 18^th at Hodapp Funeral Home in College Hill from 4-8 PM.

Address: 6041 Hamilton Ave., Cincinnati, OH  45224.

Funeral Mass will be Friday, April 19^th at St. Clare Church in College Hill at noon.

Address: 1443 Cedar Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45224.

The Willke family has asked that donations in memoriam of Mrs. Willke be made to Life Issues Institute or Cincinnati Right to Life.

Please send all condolences to J.C. Willke M.D.
7634 Pineglen Dr., Cincinnati, OH 45224

A Tribute to Barbara Willke by Brad Mattes

Photo Tribute to Barbara Willke

Click to see interactive map: Abortion Bans by State

More stories from the States:

IN – House panel OKs restrictions on abortion pill

In a bill approved 8-5 Wednesday by the House Public Policy Committee, a clinic that provides a drug that causes abortion, such as RU-486, would have to meet the same building standards as a surgical unit — complete with wider halls and doorways.

KS – bans wrongful birth suits, passes 2 pro-life bills

Roe’s interior logic has infiltrated courtrooms increasingly in the form of ‘wrongful birth’ and ‘wrongful life’ lawsuits, suits brought under the claim that money damages are owed the parents because the baby—most often one with some significant disability—should not be alive. Kansas passed three pro-life measures Tuesday. Two of them (SB 142 and SCR 1606) are headed to Gov. Sam Brownback’s desk, the third (SB 199, creating a stem cell center) is temporarily stalled in conference due to the addition of a friendly amendment.

MI – New law requires clinic licence, check for coercion

Of Michigan’s 32 clinics that offer surgical abortions, four have licenses. The state estimates 16 more abortion providers need to be licensed as freestanding outpatient surgical facilities under the law because they perform at least 120 abortions a year.

ND – Pro-life protections stun opponents

North Dakota’s governor Jack Dalrymple has signed into law a series of pro-life bills that he expects will be challenged, but he says the issues need to be decided.

OK – AG appeals rulings to US Supreme Court

In a long anticipated move, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt filed a petition Friday asking the United States Supreme Court to review a ruling that struck down a 2010 law requiring that an ultrasound be performed before an abortion…

The jurors heard testimony describing how Gosnell conducted his late-term abortion business for decades without inspection or accountability. Elinor Barsony, a Pennsylvania Department of Health employee, told the court that in 2010, she conducted the first inspection of Gosnell’s Women’s Medical Society abortion clinic since the early 1990s. What she found there was appalling. Barsony said she witnessed women drugged into stupors and left unmonitored for hours. She noted that the staff on hand for questioning seemed nervous about their qualifications, and properly so.

Arguments on evidence relating to the cause of death of Karnamaya Mongar went on for hours. The womas is described as “a tiny, petite refugee from Bhutan,” and prosecutors argued Gosnell’s untrained staff gave her multiple doses of Demerol and other drugs during her November 19, 2009 abortion.

Dr. Gosnell’s counsel challenged Ms. Mongar’s Certificate of Death on the grounds that the medical examiner switched the stated cause of death from “accident” to “homicide” after new information became available to him several months after the death.  

Dr. Gosnell’s case was a wake-up call to Pennsylvania health authorities who passed laws in 2011 that put building standards more in line with outpatient surgery centers. Requirements now include doors and elevators that can accommodate a stretcher in case something goes wrong. Perhaps related, five abortion clinics have closed since those laws passed.

The official Grand Jury Report of findings regarding Dr. Gosnell’s clinic is available to the public.

Shocking video testimony:

This week Planned Parenthood lobbyist Alisa LaPolt Snow told Florida congressmen that infanticide is a reasonable option for a mother and her physician to choose if the child lives after a botched abortion.

Florida legislators are considering a bill to require abortionists to provide medical care to an infant who survives an abortion.

Ms. Snow testified that Planned Parenthood believes the decision to kill an infant who survives a failed abortion should be left up to the woman seeking an abortion and her abortion doctor.

“So, um, it is just really hard for me to even ask you this question because I’m almost in disbelief,” said Rep. Jim Boyd. “If a baby is born on a table as a result of a botched abortion, what would Planned Parenthood want to have happen to that child that is struggling for life?”

“We believe that any decision that’s made should be left up to the woman, her family, and the physician,” said Snow.

Rep. Daniel Davis then asked, “What happens in a situation where a baby is alive, breathing on a table, moving. What do your physicians do at that point?”

“I do not have that information,” Snow replied. “I am not a physician, I am not an abortion provider. So I do not have that information.”

Snow was quickly reminded her purpose for testifying was as the representative of the organization and its stance, not as a medical professional.

Rep. Jose Oliva next asked the Planned Parenthood official, “You stated that a baby born alive on a table as a result of a botched abortion that that decision should be left to the doctor and the family. Is that what you’re saying?”

Again, Snow replied, “That decision should be between the patient and the health care provider.”

Snow was stopped again and asked, “isn’t the baby the patient?”

Watch the video of her testimony here:

By H. TOMLINSON –

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Dr. Kermit Gosnell, 72, who is charged with killing a 41-year-old woman during a botched abortion at his clinic in west Philadelphia. He is also charged in the deaths of seven babies allegedly born alive before he severed their spines with scissors.

For years, complaints about Dr. Gosnell fell on deaf ears as prosecutors and law enforcement ignored the evidence.

The story only came to light after the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) learned Gosnell was illegally selling prescriptions out of his clinic. During the subsequent drug raid, officials could no longer ignore the unsanitary and unsafe conditions in the clinic.

The Amistad Journey worked with pro-lifers in Pennsylvania, Delaware and Louisiana (a jointly-owned clinic) to review legal documents and raise public awareness to push the district’s timid prosecutor to act.  We must have prosecutors in place who will do their duty.  Evidence implicating other abortion clinics in similar conduct exists across the nation, however, prosecutors are reluctant to do their job.  This must change!

There are other abortion doctors who operate clinics in grossly unsanitary conditions, but go unchecked by law enforcement because prosecutors are scared.  In Dr. Krishna Rajanna’s Kansas City clinic, inspectors found refrigerated fetal parts stored in cut-off milk cartons and disposable drinking cups next to food, soda, and drugs.  More to come on the Dr. Rajanna story next week.

We will be watching Dr. Gosnell’s trial closely.  Since jury selection started on Monday, six women and four men have been picked for the panel.  A jury of 12 and six alternates are needed for a trial estimated to last six to eight weeks.  Also on trial is Eileen O’Neill, 52, of Phoenixville, an unlicensed doctor who worked for Gosnell.  O’Neill is charged with participating in what prosecutors call a “corrupt organization.”

The Amistad Journey is dedicated to helping ensure the laws that protect women and children are enforced. We do this through oversight of strategic legislation and training and placement of prosecutors around the U.S. We also stick with our prosecutors when the pressure is on, offering encouragement and support as they do the courageous work of bringing criminals to justice.

Your support is vital to the continuation of this work. Please Donate to the Amistad Journey today, and contact us at theamistadjourney@gmail.com with information or questions. Thank you. 

Related Article: Read More

The Arkansas House and Senate voted Wednesday to override Gov. Mike Beebe’s veto of the “Human Heartbeat Protection Act,” making abortions illegal at 12 weeks of pregnancy, when a fetal heartbeat can typically be detected by ultrasound.

The bill’s sponsor is Senator Jason Rapert, a Republican who compared the more than 50 million abortions since Roe v. Wade to the Holocaust and the Rwandan genocide. Both the House and Senate are controlled by Republicans, but several Democrats cast their votes to support this bill.

The ACLU and the Center for Reproductive Rights in New York have already vowed to bring a case in federal court challenging the constitutionality of the law. Senator Rapert said he believes the bill could survive such a challenge.

“We crafted a bill that apparently has the ability to stand the test in courts and change abortion policy in our nation and coast to coast,” he said in a New York Times interview.

We pray the bill does stand the test, and lives on to serve as a model for other state legislatures to follow.

As this and other life-affirming laws are passed, our need for good prosecutors is pressing. It is not the legislature, the governor, or even the courts that will enforce the new law – it is the local prosecutor.

Without enforcement, a law is just a piece of paper, an entry in a legal archive. But with strong enforcement, laws will serve their purpose – to protect life, close clinics, and bring criminals to justice.

We need your support to educate, train and put good prosecutors in office.

Please share in this vital work - Donate Now.

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