KENT, UK May 17, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Following last week’s revelation of a 14 year-old girl being counseled to procure an abortion without her parents knowledge, a second girl, aged 15, has come forward to say she was also offered an abortion, and that her parents would not need to be notified. Michelle Down, described her visit to a local abortuary, where, after a 10-minute appointment with a “counselor,” was told, “if you want to keep it, it’s best to tell your parents or someone that you trust, and if not, then we can arrange an abortion without your parents having to find out,” according to the UK’s Evening Times.
Down changed her mind about having the abortion after learning she was 20 weeks pregnant, not the 14 weeks she was originally told. “I read up on the internet about how it would be done and it was a very scary operation, considering I was at 20 weeks when I’d been told it was only 14,” she said. Down’s mother, Tracy, was stunned by how easily her daughter could have had the abortion without her knowledge. “That counsellor did not know Michelle’s background or history, and did not ask her whether she was allergic to anything,” she said. “Then Michelle could go up to the clinic and have it done within the day and come back out again.” The girl told the press she was happy she made the decision to let the child live, and is pleased with the support of her family and boyfriend. Meanwhile, the mother of the 14 year-old girl given a chemical abortion is suing the school for allowing a counselor to talk her daughter into an abortion she didn’t want. The counselor has been put on leave from her position temporarily because of the media attention. Friday, lawyers for Maureen Smith, the girl’s mother, said she will be taking the case to the European Court of Human Rights, citing that her rights were violated by her not being let in on her daughter’s decision to procure an abortion. She also argues that her family’s privacy was infringed upon, by the abortion counselor, Claire Chapman, who promoted the procedure in secret. Chapman, who has no formal medical training, advertises on the town of Warsop website, offering a “confidential service even if you are under 16 years of age. Nothing will be said to anyone including teachers, parents or friends,” according to the UK’s Telegraph. Read Friday’s related LifeSiteNews.com report “UK Schoolgirl’s Abortion Called ‘Government-Sanctioned Child Abuse,’” at: https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/may/04051404.html