Grand jury refuses to issue Planned Parenthood indictment / LJWorld.com

Archive for Tuesday, March 4, 2008

By Andale Gross - Associated Press Writer

March 4, 2008

Kansas City, Mo. — A Johnson County grand jury has refused to issue an indictment against Planned Parenthood after investigating the agency's clinic in suburban Kansas City.

Planned Parenthood officials said the grand jury's verdict of "no true bill" was announced in court Monday evening.

Abortion opponents, through a petition, had forced the court to convene the panel and investigate whether Planned Parenthood's Overland Park, Kan., clinic violated state restrictions on abortion. They also wanted to see whether the clinic was illegally trafficking in fetal tissue.

"We are once again vindicated, as we have been any time there is an objective review of these allegations," said Peter Brownlie, president and chief executive officer for Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri. "The jury investigated all of the allegations that were in the petition that resulted in the grand jury being formed, and they found no evidence of any wrongdoing."

Planned Parenthood attorney Pedro Irigonegaray said of Monday's verdict, "It gives me great faith in the justice system and the people of Kansas."

Those who called for the grand jury were upset with the outcome. They believe the grand jury's case was weakened because the panel did not get all the records it initially sought. The jury convened in December, but saw its investigation delayed for more than a month while it waited on records from Planned Parenthood.

"Planned Parenthood cannot claim they are free of any indictment, because the full evidence never reached the grand jury," said Tim Golba, spokesman for the LIFE (Life Is for Everyone) Coalition, the anti-abortion collaborative that petitioned for the grand jury.

The jurors issued a subpoena in January seeking the records of 16 clinic patients, but Planned Parenthood was concerned that information in the records would identify the patients.

Johnson County District Attorney Phill Kline, who has started his own separate investigation into Planned Parenthood, asked District Judge Kevin Moriarty to make the agency and its clinic abide by the subpoena.

Kline also asked for the grand jury's investigation to be extended, given the delay over records.

In the end, Planned Parenthood was allowed to turn over a limited number of records - ones relevant to the grand jury's questions about parental notice and informed consent. Jurors wanted to determine whether the clinic complied with state laws on these issues.

The law requires a parent or guardian of a minor seeking an abortion to be notified, and that a woman must be given information about the procedure or alternatives 24 hours before an abortion is performed.

Kline spokesman Brian Burgess declined to comment Monday. Burgess said Kline, who is working on a murder trial, was unavailable for comment.

Cheryl Sullenger, spokeswoman with Operation Rescue, one of the groups in the LIFE Coalition, said she isn't surprised by the grand jury's verdict. She said jurors didn't appear to seriously investigate all of the allegations.

"We've been considering a second grand jury effort," Sullenger said. "That's something that's on the table right now."'

Brownlie said he expected abortion opponents to claim the grand jury's work was tainted.

"Any time a decision is different from the one they want, they will claim it's because of some nefarious doings," he said. "The only people who continue to insist that there's criminal wrongdoing are people who have a political agenda."

Discussion

LJWorld.com doesn't necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post.
Read our full policy. Also, read about banned accounts and harassing comments.

4 March 2008
at 7 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

bondmen (Anonymous) says…

Why didn't the GJ look into abortions performed on girls under 14 who were coerced into killing their child by an adult sperm donor? Raping children is a crime in Kansas the last time I looked! Not reporting the rape is a crime too. Doing so would no doubt interfere with PP's big bloody business.

Now if there are no crimes, or at least no crimes worth punishing, then we truly live in the wild wild west and it's each man for himself.
4 March 2008
at 7:28 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

deec (Anonymous) says…

Alternatively, the live birth records could be searched for evidence of statutory rape. Any mother under 16 years 9 months would also be a victim, and these files are public records.
4 March 2008
at 7:28 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

The_Original_Bob (Anonymous) says…

Uh, oh. This one ought to get hot and testy today.

Hmmm. Phillip loses yet again.
4 March 2008
at 8:13 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

zzgoeb (Anonymous) says…

What an amazing waste of the people's resources!!! If Kline would persue ACTUAL crimes and criminals, he might catch a rapist or two. Fishing expeditions based on personal religious beliefs backed by fanatics is exactly what we do not need, and is assuredly malfeasance of office. The right-to-life folks should go down to the homeless shelter and help the needy, as the young rabbi said on the Mount. When will religious zealots realize that government is NOT their personal hit squad?
4 March 2008
at 8:23 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Agnostick (Anonymous) says…

bondmen, I think you… along with Kline, STRS, parkay, gypsynatalie, and other extremist crackpots… just got:

pwned!!!!!!
4 March 2008
at 8:37 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Agnostick (Anonymous) says…

Unfortunately, logicsound, current law says we can be right back here @ every 18 months, like clockwork… as long as the extremists can forg—I mean, collect enough signatures.

They can hit Johnson and Sedgwick counties over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over ……………………………………..

but logic and law will win out, every time! ;)
4 March 2008
at 8:41 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

WereAllMonkeys (Anonymous) says…

From “Apocalypse Now”
“Mmm I love the smell of burning Fetus in the morning” or something like that.

4 March 2008
at 8:42 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

cait48 (Anonymous) says…

I had the same thought LS04. When does a legal right become legal harassment? Do double jeopardy laws have any effect here? What are they going to do, convene jury after jury until they get one that will give them the answer they want to hear? Seems to me that if they did that they will be setting up PP to go to SCOTUS and have the very right they are using to harass PP taken away.
4 March 2008
at 8:46 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Agnostick (Anonymous) says…

Actually, the line is, “Man, I love the smell of burning monkey in the morning! The smell of evolution!”
4 March 2008
at 8:55 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Valkyrie_of_Reason (Kathy Getto) says…

Well said, logic. I would also be interested in any limitations that may be set out to curb the vigilantes!

On another note: Kline working on a murder trial? You mean like to enter the courtroom, and practice law?
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaa!!!!!!!!
4 March 2008
at 8:55 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Dracul (Bill Chapman) says…

Here's an idea - every time a Grand Jury is convened by petition, the petitioner(s) MUST pay all costs involved, should the defendant be cleared of the charge(s).

This would prevent groups like LIFE from using this law to harass someone(s) and avoid having messy things like courts and lawyers probing their lives, businesses, etc. because of violation of harassment laws.

On the other side, maybe LIFE should be investigated for possible fraud involving the petition against Planned Parenthood. Lets get a petition and look over THEIR records and make them prove every name on the petition is valid and legal.
4 March 2008
at 9:20 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

akt2 (Anonymous) says…

Let the pro life lunatics pay the medical costs for the premature babies that these young teens are delivering. Then after the baby lives for a few hours or days and expires, they can cover the funeral expenses. After that they will need to provide psychological treatment for the young mother with the dead baby, that she has held and named. This is what happened to a 16 year old girl that I know. All because her religious zealot mother didn't take her for an abortion. Or take her to get birth control when the girl started dating older teen boys.
4 March 2008
at 9:53 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

jonas (Anonymous) says…

“bondmen (Anonymous) says:

Why didn't the GJ look into abortions performed on girls under 14 who were coerced into killing their child by an adult sperm donor?”

I suppose it would never occur to you that maybe they did, and found out that the reports were overblown and exaggerated. It must be frustrating being so crippled by bias.
4 March 2008
at 10:05 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

SettingTheRecordStraight (Anonymous) says…

This is too bad. However, everytime Planned Parenthood has to spend money defending its grisly business, the better off our society is. Also, this and every other case that puts PP in the headlines educates the masses that Planned Parenthood isn't in the “family planning” business at all; it's in the abortion-for-profit business.
4 March 2008
at 10:05 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Valkyrie_of_Reason (Kathy Getto) says…

warmer: great minds………………………

4 March 2008
at 10:15 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Baille (Anonymous) says…

“However, everytime Planned Parenthood has to spend money defending its grisly business, the better off our society is.”

If there was ever a perfect example of abusing the judicial system, this is it. Filing suit just to harass another and/or make another spend money. No doubt by a Republican who b–— about “frivolous lawsuits,” too.
4 March 2008
at 10:21 a.m.

Permalink

notajayhawk (Anonymous) says…

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.
4 March 2008
at 10:38 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

SettingTheRecordStraight (Anonymous) says…

Baille,

This wasn't a lawsuit. It was a petitioned grand jury convened to investigate a likely crime. Big difference.

And, in the end, we weren't provided all the facts in this case because PP unnecessarily delayed providing needed information on its disposal of aborted human children. Subsequently, justice was denied.
4 March 2008
at 10:45 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

staff04 (Anonymous) says…

We? Really? We?

I didn't realize you were on the Grand Jury, STRS…how ever could you not convince the others, what with all of your concern and passion for the “children?”

Justice was denied…HA! What a joke. YOU…got the “relevant” records according to the article. There is absolutely no legal basis for allowing you to raid all of the records on a witch hunt, no matter how much you'd like to claim otherwise. Justice was denied…sheesh…
4 March 2008
at 10:50 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Baille (Anonymous) says…

It still constitutes an abuse of process if done to harass, annoy, or expend the resources of a party. Hypocrisy may split hairs, but financial death can come through decapitation by lawsuit or through blood loss caused by repeated frivolous grand jury proceedings.

And from what I saw PP acted to protect the confidentiality of patients not the practice of licensed physicians. If Kline and the zealots who propel him would practice a little bit of restraint and focus their energy on alleged wrongdoing rather than religious fervor, they would go further in uncovering the relevant facts and get them much faster.
But they don't want facts. They want headlines.

Nobody wants to see child rapists walk free - whether pro-choice or pro-life. But this is not and never has been about child rape. It is about ending abortion. That's it. It's all it has ever been about.
4 March 2008
at 10:56 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

HodgePodge (Erin Parmelee) says…

SettingTheRecordStraight (Anonymous) says:

This is too bad. However, everytime Planned Parenthood has to spend money defending its grisly business, the better off our society is. Also, this and every other case that puts PP in the headlines educates the masses that Planned Parenthood isn't in the “family planning” business at all; it's in the abortion-for-profit business.
–––––––––––––––––––––––-

Really?? Cause I do all my “family planning” at Planned Parenthood—annual exams, birth control pills, etc. And last I checked, abortion made up 3% of their annual profits. So, STRS, where are you getting your information, because it appears to be WAY off.
4 March 2008
at 11:21 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

cait48 (Anonymous) says…

The same place that parkay gets his/hers, Hodgepodge; Operation Rescue. They have no qualms about lying and skewing statistics and heck even shooting a doctor or two to get what they want. Dontcha know it's all for the “babeeeee's”? As far as they're concerned, no lie is too small or crime too great to save the “unborn” because in their opinion the “end justifies the means”.
4 March 2008
at 11:25 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

cait48 (Anonymous) says…

So tell me STRS are you part of this conspiracy? Because when PP mounts their lawsuit for harassment and false accusation I want to make sure you get in on your share of the “action”.

4 March 2008
at 11:30 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

SettingTheRecordStraight (Anonymous) says…

Hodge,
They still profit from the abortion of generations worth of our children. That makes them vile, disgusting, despicable, septic pieces of filth.

Baille,
Who brought religion into this argument other than you? I have consistently made the case on this an other posts that ending the abortion holocaust in America is a legal matter. If you want to make it about religion, that is your business.

And finally, Baille, yes, I hope “financial death” comes to PP and that it comes quickly.
4 March 2008
at 11:38 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Multidisciplinary (Anonymous) says…

akt2…
good post.
4 March 2008
at 11:50 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

staff04 (Anonymous) says…

I gotta agree with you on this one, r_t…I'm sure you got censored for the representation of the 4-letter word, but I think there are a great many of those that get right through. That does seem odd that that comment was gone so quickly.
4 March 2008
at 11:53 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

notajayhawk (Anonymous) says…

Okay, I give up, what the heck did *I* say that got removed?

I suggested Mr. Golba should go away and stop wasting the taxpayers' money, and that he might not be so anxious for the grand jury to obtain the medical records of PP clients if he found out his own daughter's would turn out to be one of them. No curse words. What did I say to offend the LJW PD?
4 March 2008
at 12:07 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

staff04 (Anonymous) says…

Well, r_t, at least it was tit-for-tat, as notajayhawk's comment, while shocking, was free of any offensive language and was removed as well…

The censors do seem to be a little hyperactive on this matter…
4 March 2008
at 12:28 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Crossfire (Anonymous) says…

The Revrend KKKline is in the middle of losing two murder trials.
The trial of Edwin Hall for the rape kidnapping and murder of 18-year-old Kelsey Smith and the retrial of John Henry Horton for the murder of 13-year-old Lizabeth Wilson.
Both of these should be slamm dunks.
Watch Phill's Stumble-Bums blow these too.

http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/5…
http://www.kansascity.com/news/breaki…
4 March 2008
at 12:55 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

HodgePodge (Erin Parmelee) says…

SettingTheRecordStraight (Anonymous) says:

Hodge,
They still profit from the abortion of generations worth of our children. That makes them vile, disgusting, despicable, septic pieces of filth.
––––––––––––––––––––––––-

Yes, a 3% profit. Your statement was skewed to make it look like they are in the business of….how did you put it….”Planned Parenthood isn't in the “family planning” business at all; it's in the abortion-for-profit business” I'm just pointing out the fallacy of your statement. 97% of their profits come from exams, birth control, education, vasectomy, etc. So they are, in fact, in the “business of” family planning. Sorry if you don't like that, but facts are hard to argue.
4 March 2008
at 12:56 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

notajayhawk (Anonymous) says…

staff04 (Anonymous) says:

“as notajayhawk's comment, while shocking,”

It wasn't even intended to be shocking, if you're referring to the arbitrary age I posited for Mr. Golba's hypothetical daughter. The article appears to be about a grand jury investigation into abortions performed on minors. And I remember a story a while back in the LJW about a middle school somewhere giving out birth control pills to kids younger than that number I mentioned. Does the LJW think kids that young aren't having sex (or abortions)?

4 March 2008
at 1:31 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

moo (Anonymous) says…

Amen, hodgepodge. Hooray for planned parenthood! They make birth control more affordable and discreet in order to help prevent more abortions.

This witch hunt does not protect girls, it endangers them. It makes them less likely to trust their medical records to a place that is continually forced to expose them. If we're not careful, this will make girls avoid getting birth control for fear their parents or someone else might find out. Unprotected teen sex leads to unwanted teen pregnancies, which lead to abortions.

If you are really anti-abortion, help Planned Parenthood and other similar organizations with their primary goal, to make sure all pregnancies are intentional.
4 March 2008
at 2:09 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Agnostick (Anonymous) says…

Dracul says:

“Here's an idea - every time a Grand Jury is convened by petition, the petitioner(s) MUST pay all costs involved, should the defendant be cleared of the charge(s).

“This would prevent groups like LIFE from using this law to harass someone(s) and avoid having messy things like courts and lawyers probing their lives, businesses, etc. because of violation of harassment laws.”
_________________________________________________

Or better yet, why not abolish this tired statute altogether?

I'm looking around for some sort of reference, but I seem to remember from previous stories about this that Kansas is the exception, rather than the rule, as far as states that allow citizens to petition for a grand jury.

If other states get along just fine without this bothersome law, why not Kansas?
4 March 2008
at 2:19 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

dirkleisure (Anonymous) says…

Here's what nobody wants to acknowledge about this grand jury:

They most certainly would have requested and reviewed additional records, but the perusal of the most crucial records to the petitioner's case was evidence that the claim was wholly without merit.

Why muddle through additional documents when it was so easily proven the claim should be dismissed?
4 March 2008
at 2:41 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Valkyrie_of_Reason (Kathy Getto) says…

Agnostick (Anonymous) says:

I'm looking around for some sort of reference, but I seem to remember from previous stories about this that Kansas is the exception……..
_____________________________________________

…….Nebraska, Oklahoma, New Mexico, North Dakota and Nevada.
4 March 2008
at 3 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

dirkleisure (Anonymous) says…

And conservatives are not? What about removing the educational exemption for materials that might otherwise be considered pornographic? We don't need our high school kids being exposed to pictures of pee pees in science class!
4 March 2008
at 3:30 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

moo (Anonymous) says…

RT, everyone wants laws passed that favor their point of view because everyone thinks that they are right. Stop acting like you and the right wing are so above it all. You want to enact laws you believe in and remove laws you don't just like anyone else.
4 March 2008
at 3:31 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

HodgePodge (Erin Parmelee) says…

dirkleisure (Anonymous) says:

And conservatives are not? What about removing the educational exemption for materials that might otherwise be considered pornographic? We don't need our high school kids being exposed to pictures of pee pees in science class!
–––––––––––––––––––––––-

Okay, that made me laugh out loud. :)
4 March 2008
at 4:19 p.m.

Permalink

Defender (Anonymous) says…

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.

4 March 2008
at 4:30 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Agnostick (Anonymous) says…

Thanks, VoR! Wherever did you find it? All my Googling and Wikiness was for naught… :p
4 March 2008
at 4:41 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

cait48 (Anonymous) says…

“There will be more grand juries to investigate Planned Parenthood, and eventually a judge and prosecutor who don't make shady back-room deals with Planned Parenthood shysters to doctor and withhold subpoenaed criminal evidence. There will be justice for criminal abortionist quacks and their killer staff.”
––––––––––––––––––––––––––—
Yeah, parkay, you and your buddies (I'm assuming you belong to the LIFE coalition) will bring a petition every 18 months until one of several things happen;
1. Someone mounts a campaign to see how many of the petition signatures are forged.
2. Someone mounts a campaign to force a mandate on striking down the law.
3. The legislature vacates the law or alters it significantly for us so it can't be used as a means of harassment.
4. PP sues.
Don't forget that PP is receiving just as much money if not more for it's legal defense fund from pro-choice organizations on a national basis as your friends are from the LIFE coalition. You aren't going to run them out of money nor are you ever going to get the answer you want. I find your statement about “justice” laughable. You aren't interested in justice. You're interested in using the law as a sword, a concept of fascism. So don't give me that BS. Why don't you make your whine about “back room shady deals” publicly to the face of the judges and attorneys involved? I'd love to see you slapped with a lawsuit.
4 March 2008
at 5:42 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Valkyrie_of_Reason (Kathy Getto) says…

Ag:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/0…
4 March 2008
at 5:55 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

bondmen (Anonymous) says…

Planned Parenthood of Idaho officials apologized Wednesday for what they called an employee's “serious mistake” in encouraging a donation aimed at aborting black babies.

http://www.idahostatesman.com/newsupd…

By the way, if some of us can kill pre-born human beings, why can't some of us own and keep others as slaves

http://www.plannedparenthoodexposed.com/
4 March 2008
at 5:56 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

beobachter (Anonymous) says…

Parkay, average reader here is sick of your flat out lies, sanctimonious BS and in general your mindless rants. If you have evidence of any, even 1 of your claims, take it to law enforcement, if not simply STFU and leave the real world alone. Excuse my rants, I'm simply sick of the religious nuts around here.
4 March 2008
at 9:38 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

merrill (Anonymous) says…

At the top of the Planned Parenthood list of birth controls
is abstinence so they are doing the right thing.
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/heal…

So the problem as always is not Planned Parenthood but careless males who either force themselves, do not understand what causes pregnancy OR cannot say no.

Soooooo it's time to mandate sex education for males in all schools beginning at age 11 for at least 4 semesters in hopes of it soaking in before they graduate high school.
4 March 2008
at 10:52 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Baille (Anonymous) says…

“By the way, if some of us can kill pre-born human beings, why can't some of us own and keep others as slaves”

define:non sequitur
4 March 2008
at 10:54 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Baille (Anonymous) says…

What about terminating pre-conceived human embryos? I think we all ought to go to hell - or at least jail - for just thinking of not having a kid.

5 March 2008
at 8:06 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Multidisciplinary (Anonymous) says…

Removed posts:
Back a few years, it was fairly common for a post to be removed just because they were next to an offensive comment. It seemed to be an oops (capitals) that would happen, as in they (the LJW removers, wink)clicked on the wrong post, then realized they meant to do the next one, etc.
Some people were banned just because they had responded/ engaged with a banned person's post.
Like when Hannibal was banned, Clarice got banned too, although what she said wasn't bad. His posts were just his usual stuff and they weren't usually banned.
Those were fun days, with OMB and bankboy119, etc.
Happened very often and was definitely commented about.
5 March 2008
at 8:35 a.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

bondmen (Anonymous) says…

Oh how soon we forget that slaves in America were once legally defined as only part of a human being and, if one so chose, could be owned by another.

So it is today where one can legally choose to kill this new, pre-born human because it has not been defined in law as being a full human being.

If one is unable to see the connection between slavery and abortion then one has not mastered the thinking process and one's full humanity is subject to being legally defined away someday. So be careful what you sanction and for what you wish!
12 March 2008
at 1:49 p.m.

Suggest removal

Permalink

Baille (Anonymous) says…

Exactly, bondmen. People need to realize that even gametes are potential human beings with almost everything necessary to make them what the intellectual elites define as “human.” It is past time that these preconceived humans are recognized and fully protected under the law.

Everyday we sit back while a genocide occurs. Everyday gametes are left laying in the trash beneath crumpled tissues and empty containers of petroleum by-products. We celebrate these deaths and encourage them with Girls Gone Wild videos, gratuitous media coverage of Victoria's Secret models, and an education system that promotes the idea that rampant gamete death is a “natural” and “healthy” part of growing up. It has gotten so bad that women routinely take “medication” designed to keep the pre-conceived humans from even being produced. And when they are - when these preconceived humans actually become preborn - these same medications deny them the sustenance of the womb and they are flushed out of their natural habitat - expelled from the womb like so much body waste. It makes me sick even thinking about.

Men, put away the tissues and the well-worn lingerie magazines. Women, ship those pills to Rome where they can be safely secured by the Saints among us. Cease the rampant killing of the preconceived and unborn-but-unattached. For if you don't, someday we will all own/be slaves.