LEHIGH ACRES, FL, Aug 8, 2001 (LSN.ca) – As a result of a recent ruling in an abortion case, forced abortions have been declared illegal in the United States. The ruling involved a novel use of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE) resulting in forced abortion being punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Steven Mosher, president of Population Research Institute has announced a national campaign called ABOUT F.A.C.E. – to protect American women from violations committed in private and state-funded abortion clinics and family planning centers throughout the U.S.
“You don’t have to go to China to discover forced abortion,” said Mosher. “It exists right here in America, and has for many years. But now there’s a way to stop it.” ABOUT F.A.C.E. draws on the Roe II v. Aware Woman Center for Choice decision of June 8, 2001. In that decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta verified testimony from a victim of forced abortion in the State of Florida.
Court documents reveal that abortionist Dr. William P. Egherman, on March 29,1997, ignored a woman’s demands for him to stop her abortion and call an ambulance, because of acute abdominal pains. The abortionist ignored the victim’s pleas and instead instructed four assistants to hold the victim down. Egherman completed the abortion by force. After the incident, physicians discovered that Egherman had lacerated the plaintiff’s colon and ruptured her uterus during the forced abortion. The court ruled that—under FACE – Egherman violated the woman’s right to access services to treat her severe abdominal pain.
Mosher, believes the precedent can help protect women against the full range of abortion-related abuses, including: threats, lack of informed consent and lack of information about the harmful side-effects of abortion. FACE was a Clinton-initiated law, which initially was used to hamper pro-life efforts outside abortion clinics.