MIAMI, May 3, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Palm Beach Juvenile Judge Ronald Alvarez gave in to pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood today and has allowed a girl, a ward of the state, now more than 14 weeks pregnant, to abort her child. The girl, who can only be identified by the initials ‘L.G.’ begged the court for an abortion saying that she had no job and was not ready to be a mother.
The Florida Department of Child and Family Services had argued that L.G. was too young to make the decision. Yesterday the news spread that the judge, after issuing a temporary stay had ordered a psychological evaluation to determine if the girl was capable of making such a life-changing decision. On Monday, however, the judge relented and claimed that L.G. would not be physically or emotionally harmed by an abortion.
This claim, however, besides being an unfounded prediction of future events, flies in the face of statistics showing that abortion is far from the safe, emotionally harmless medical procedure portrayed by Planned Parenthood. There is significant risk of a perforated uterus or other internal damage or infection, permanent damage to fertility, and in many cases long term, debilitating psychological side effects. As well, the children of women who have had one or more abortions have a significantly higher risk of being born prematurely.
It is not known if L.G. underwent the abortion immediately after the decision was made. In Florida a 13 year-old girl is not competent to drive, purchase cigarettes, vote, or leave school without permission of parents or guardians. “On the other hand,” commented James Joyner on his weblog, Outside the Beltway, “they are often tried as adults if they kill someone. Unless it’s a fetus, in which case a judge has to decide for them.”
Read previous LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Abortion Stopped for 13 Year-Old Florida Girl