Kansas Attorney General Paul Morrison (D) on Thursday filed 19 misdemeanor charges against abortion provider George Tiller alleging he violated a Kansas law that requires an independent, consulting physician to approve some late-term abortions, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports (Hanna, AP/Houston Chronicle, 6/28).
Former state Attorney General Phill Kline (R) in 2004 subpoenaed the records of 90 women and girls who in 2003 underwent late-term abortions at Comprehensive Health in Overland Park, Kan., and Women's Health Care Services in Wichita, Kan., which is owned by Tiller. Kline charged Tiller with 30 misdemeanors for allegedly performing 15 illegal late-term abortions in 2003 on women ages 10 to 22 without properly reporting the details to the state. Kline hired attorney Don McKinney to be special prosecutor in the case. Morrison -- who defeated Kline in the November 2006 election -- fired McKinney in March, and Morrison's office asked the state Supreme Court to dismiss McKinney's appeal.
Morrison then conducted his own investigation. He sent a letter on Tuesday to the attorney representing Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri, which operates Comprehensive Health, saying he had ended the investigation against the clinic. Morrison spokesperson Ashley Anstaett on Wednesday said that 15 of the 30 charges Kline flied against Tiller were based on incomplete and substandard information (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 6/28).
Morrison's Charges Against Tiller
A 1998 Kansas law says that before an abortion of a fetus of 21 weeks' gestation or more, two physicians must determine if continuation of a pregnancy will lead to death or "substantial and irreversible" harm to a "major bodily function" (AP/Houston Chronicle, 6/28). According to the Kansas City Star, the consulting physician agreeing on the necessity of a late-term abortion cannot have legal or financial ties to the abortion provider.
According to Morrison, Tiller before performing 19 late-term abortions in 2003 received a second opinion from physician Ann Kristin Neuhaus, who Morrison alleges had financial ties with Tiller when they both signed off on the abortions. Neuhaus was not charged because the law applies only to the physician who performs the abortion, Morrison said (Klepper, Kansas City Star, 6/28). According to Anstaett, Kline in December 2006 gave Neuhaus limited immunity from prosecution applicable only to statements she made in her deposition, the AP/Topeka Capital-Journal reports. Anstaett said the immunity was given "so that [Neuhaus] would feel comfortable to testify so that her statements couldn't be used against her," adding that Morrison is honoring the immunity (Hanna, AP/Topeka Capital-Journal, 6/30).
If convicted, Tiller could face up to one year in jail and a $2,500 fine for each charge. The Kansas State Board of Healing Arts also could consider revoking Tiller's license to practice if he is convicted, according to the Star. Tiller is scheduled to appear in Sedgwick County, Kan., court on Aug. 7.
Reaction
Morrison said the charges were a "technical violation" of the law. Tiller's attorneys, Lee Thompson and Dan Monnat, in a statement said that Tiller is innocent, adding that Morrison's announcement "involves a difference of opinion between lawyers regarding unusual technicalities in Kansas abortion law procedure" (AP/Houston Chronicle, 6/28).
Many abortion-rights opponents said they are pleased with the charges but also criticized Morrison for not filing additional charges, the Star reports. Mary Kay Culp, director of Kansans for Life, said she is "really disappointed and frankly disgusted" that Morrison did not file charges alleging illegal abortions. Rep. Lance Kinzer (R) said that although he is pleased with the charges, he is concerned that they did not address whether women were receiving late-term abortions based on false diagnoses (Kansas City Star, 6/28).
Related Editorial
Abortion-rights opponents are "getting what they wanted -- charges against" Tiller and "should see Morrison's announcement as confirmation" that Kline's investigation into Tiller's abortion practices "had merit, if his methods, legal knowledge and reasoning were wrong," a Wichita Eagle editorial says. The editorial adds that Kansas residents "who just want to see laws obeyed and justice served should see Thursday's announcement as the latest confirmation that they picked the right man for the attorney general's job last November." Both abortion-rights supporters and opponents "should step aside" and let the legal system work, the editorial concludes (Wichita Eagle, 6/29).
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