LJWorld.com

Topeka — An investigator said he kept edited records from abortion clinics in a Rubbermaid container in his dining room for several weeks. Others, according to testimony, stored them briefly in cars and homes and copied them at a Kinko's in downtown Topeka.

How prosecutor Phill Kline and his employees handled patient records is a major issue in a legal dispute before the Kansas Supreme Court. A Planned Parenthood clinic is trying to force Kline to return patient files that could be a key part of his criminal case accusing the clinic of performing illegal abortions and falsifying documents.

The clinic, Comprehensive Health, of Overland Park, has the support of Attorney General Steve Six, whose office called Kline's handling of documents "appalling" in a court filing. The clinic also wants the Supreme Court to consider citing Kline for contempt.

Kline, once the attorney general and now the Johnson County district attorney, argues the records were handled safely, that patient privacy never was at risk and that Planned Parenthood wants to keep him from prosecuting its Overland Park clinic.

As district attorney, Kline filed 107 charges against the clinic, alleging it performed illegal abortions and falsified documents.

Lawsuits unsealed

Almost all details about the dispute remained secret for 11 months because the Supreme Court had kept separate lawsuits filed by Planned Parenthood and the attorney general's office under seal. On Friday, the court unsealed them, making hundreds of pages of documents public.

"I am pleased that, finally, the truth is coming out regarding the nature and extent of Mr. Kline's activities," said Pedro Irigonegaray, a Topeka attorney representing Planned Parenthood.

Abortion opponents said the newly released documents showed that since Kline left the attorney general's office, his successors have not been aggressive in pursuing abortion providers and has even protected them.

And Kline said a key point is that a district judge who once supervised his investigation of Planned Parenthood gave him permission to transfer records to Johnson County before he took over there in January 2007. He said such sharing of information is routine in law enforcement.

"This was harassment," he said of Planned Parenthood's lawsuit. "It's a criminal defendant suing a prosecutor personally."

Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit against Kline in June 2007 and asked the Supreme Court to place it under seal, a request the justices honored. The attorney general's office filed its own case two months later, also under seal, naming the judge who'd once supervised Kline as the defendant.

It's highly unusual for the Supreme Court to seal a case, and its doing so spawned a legislative bill to make it more difficult. Later, both Kline and the clinic said the cases didn't need to remain sealed.

Arguments scheduled

The court scheduled arguments from attorneys in Planned Parenthood's lawsuit for June 12. It told lawyers involved in the attorney general's case to file written arguments by May 22 on whether it should be dismissed.

"Our goal has always been to protect women's private medical records," said Six spokeswoman Ashley Anstaett.

But Kline spokesman Brian Burgess noted that the Supreme Court said it did only "minimal" editing to protect patient privacy before unsealing the cases. He said the records at issued contained "no IDs."

"How long will they be allowed to get away with that before you guys in the media start challenging this nonsense?" Burgess said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

Aggressive pursuit

Kline, an anti-abortion Republican, began investigating Planned Parenthood's clinic and another operated in Wichita by Dr. George Tiller in 2003, months after he became attorney general.

His attempt to obtain information during a court-supervised investigation from about 90 patients' files led to a lengthy legal battle. Eventually, the Supreme Court spelled out how those records would be handled, and Kline eventually was able to review copies edited to remove patient identifications.

Kline lost his 2006 re-election race to an abortion rights supporter, but Johnson County Republicans picked him to fill a vacancy in the county prosecutor's job.

Kline didn't pursue a criminal case against Planned Parenthood's clinic as attorney general but, three days before leaving that office, he forwarded edited records from 29 Planned Parenthood patients' files to the Johnson County district attorney's office.

Planned Parenthood contends Kline couldn't do that because he had a duty to give up control of the records when he left the attorney general's office. It said he disregarded "clear requirements" spelled out by the Supreme Court and should be punished with a contempt citation.

Shawnee County District Judge Richard Anderson, who'd supervised Kline's investigation as attorney general, declined to do so or order the return of the records. He said during one closed April 2007 hearing that before Kline left the state office, he'd given him permission to forward records "to any other prosecutor" who might work with Kline.

Kline not only forwarded Planned Parenthood records to Johnson County but also edited versions of records from Tiller's clinic as well.

When Planned Parenthood and the new attorney general asked the Supreme Court to intervene, the handling of patient records became a big issue. The high court eventually appointed a special master to gather evidence.

That evidence included testimony of Kline deputies, who acknowledged moving copies of records to their cars to transport them and briefly store them, and keeping them briefly at their homes and, in one case, a garage.

Investigator Jared Reed, who followed Kline from the attorney general's office to a job in Johnson County, said he stored some records in a Rubbermaid container in his apartment dining room from early January to mid-February 2007.

According to a transcript, he said during a Dec. 3 hearing, "Looking back at it, it kind of strays from the normalcy of, you know, chain of custody of evidence."