Following the March 23 death announcement of imprisoned abortionist Kermit Gosnell, Illinois Right to Life issued a statement urging the state to ensure that abortion clinics are not operating with the kinds of health and safety violations that led to Gosnell’s conviction.
Gosnell was sentenced to life in prison in 2013 for the murder of three babies who survived illegal late-term abortions, Zeale News previously reported. According to court documents, he was also responsible for the deaths of several women due to botched abortions and careless procedures.
Court documents also show that an evaluator for the National Abortion Federation (NAF) inspected his clinic and found multiple health and safety violations. The evaluator rejected Gosnell’s application to be admitted to the NAF on the grounds that the clinic was not up to health and safety codes but never reported Gosnell.
“We have to question why an evaluator from NAF, whose stated mission is to ensure safe, legal, and acceptable abortion care, and to promote health and justice for women, did not report Gosnell to authorities,” the grand jury wrote in its report.
Illinois Right to Life raised concerns that similar cases have occurred in Illinois and could continue to happen because the state does not regularly inspect abortion facilities.
“Women who travel here for abortions, or who live here, are at risk for substandard care,” Illinois Right to Life stated. “Even those citizens who support legal abortion want abortion to be ‘safe,’ – at least for the mother.”
The organization cited the case of Dr. Keith Reisinger-Kindle, who, as Zeale News previously reported, was sued after a woman claimed he left more than half of her unborn child inside her, causing medical complications. Illinois Right to Life also pointed to Dr. Ulrich Klopfer, who kept in his Illinois home the bodies of thousands of children he aborted.
“We are calling upon Governor Pritzker to put the health and safety of women FIRST, and to reinstate regular, intentional, and thorough inspection of Illinois' abortion clinics,” Illinois Right to Life said. “It took the death of a woman in Gosnell's clinic for law enforcement to act. Please, Governor Pritzker, don't sacrifice pregnant women on the altar of choice.”