An abortionist who failed to report several cases of statutory rape to authorities as required by law may get off without a criminal record, paying a modest fee and serving a minimal amount of community service.
Dr. Ulrich “George” Klopfer failed to report an abortion he performed on a 13-year-old girl in South Bend, Indiana, in 2013.
Having sex with a minor 13 or younger in the state of Indiana is prosecuted as a felony, and abortionists must report performing abortions on young girls to the Department of Child Services and the Indiana State Department of Health within three days.
Klopfer withheld reports for as much as half a year, giving a child molester the opportunity to victimize his target again and again.
St. Joseph County Prosecutor's office charged Klopfer with a misdemeanor.
On Monday, the office entered a pre-trial diversion on Klopfer's behalf. Klopfer will have all charges expunged from his record by next December if he pays $330 in fines, does 24 hours of community service, and does not commit additional crimes or move without informing the office, according to the terms reported to the South Bend Tribune on Friday.
Klopfer also failed to report the abortion of another minor in nearby Lake County, leading to a second misdemeanor charge.
In a third instance, Klopfer performed an abortion on a young black girl at Fort Wayne Women's Health Organization on February 7, 2013. He did not report the abortion until July 25, more than six months later.
Klopfer, who lives in Illinois, was unrepentant. He told Sofia Resnick of RH Reality Check that he encourages girls under 14 to go to Illinois or Ohio in order to avoid such reporting requirements. He added that perhaps one-third of the young girls he talks to take his advice.
Authorities have since charged the Fort Wayne girl's alleged abuser, Ronte Latham, with child molestation.
If the most flamboyant, Klopfer is far from alone in flouting state law designed to protect young girls from serial molestation. Between 58 and 75 percent of abortions performed on Indiana girls under the age of 14 were not reported in accordance with the law, according to an investigation by Amanda Gray of the South Bend Tribune.
The Indiana Medical Licensing Board will review the case of Klopfer along with Dr. Resad Pasic, Dr. Kathleen Glover, and Dr. Raymond Robinson next January.
The Medical Licensing Board has yet to set a date for Klopfer's hearing.
The local government considered an ordinance requiring that abortionists have admitting privileges. The St. Joseph County Council Committee decided against the ordinance last Tuesday, despite testimony from Dr. Donna Harrison of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG) that such agreements are necessary for continuity of care.
St. Joseph County is home to South Bend, the home of the nation's most conspicuous Catholic college, the University of Notre Dame.