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WASHINGTON, D.C., January 31, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Disgraced late-term abortionist James S. Pendergraft, IV, whose only active medical license remains under a double-suspension order in Florida, has secretly set up shop in the Washington, D. C. area, where he is only partially completing late-term abortions through “lethal injection,” according to the pro-life group Operation Rescue.
 
A recently launched website that apparently belongs to Pendergraft, called LateTermAbortions.net, describes in detail how his new office is soliciting women from all over the nation and from other countries for “intracardiac injection of medication into the fetal heart,” which kills the baby in utero.

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Pendergraft makes it very clear that he does not complete the abortion process at his secret office. He writes: 

We perform the intracardiac injection of medication into the fetal heart in our private facility in the Washington, D.C. area. Once the fetal heart beat has stopped, the patient can elect to return back to her private physician to complete the induction of labor with delivery of the fetus, or they may elect to go to another facility to have the termination process completed.

The abortionist also makes it clear that the purpose of his multi-state late-term lethal injection scheme is to evade the laws of Florida and compel the participation of others in the abortion process.

Pendergraft describes how women will be told over the phone to meet at a specific location, where they will be met and escorted to the secret facility for their baby’s fatal injection.

“While Pendergraft attempts to convince the reader this is about security, it is more likely about evading law enforcement, because this dangerous process is highly unethical and likely illegal since he holds no active medical license whatsoever,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.

When multi-state late-term abortion operations have been discovered in other states, medical licenses have been suspended, such as in the cases of Steven C. Brigham and Kermit Gosnell.  Maryland is considering legislation to ban the dangerous practice of starting late-term abortions in one state and ending them in another.

While it remains unknown the exact location of Pendergraft’s new facility, Operation Rescue says that descriptions on the website would place it in the jurisdiction of the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia.  Pendergraft holds no active license in any of these jurisdictions.

Operation Rescue has filed complaints in the District and both states asking for immediate investigations into Pendergraft’s late-term abortion operation.

The abortionist has a long history of legal issues that have included four suspensions of his Florida medical license.

Last year the Florida Board of Medicine suspended his license after it found that Pendergraft allowed an employee to administer narcotics to patients without a license, and, although Pendergraft knew the employee had a drug problem, allowed her to order drugs under his name, and prescribed steriods to her for no apparent reason.

In the past his license has been suspended for botched abortions, committing illegal late-term abortions, and dispensing drugs without a license. In 2004, he pled guilty to impeding justice while under investigation for extortion.

“Pendergraft is a proven danger to the public,” said Newman.  “This is another example of authorities willing to look the other way and abortionists who are willing to endanger women and violate laws because they believe they are somehow above them.  We pray our complaints will help stop this abuse and bring Pendergraft to justice.”