PHILADELPHIA—An abortion doctor who catered to minorities, immigrants and poor women was charged with eight counts of murder in the deaths of a patient and seven babies who were born alive and then killed with scissors, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Dr. Kermit Gosnell, 69, made millions of dollars over 30 years, performing as many illegal, late-term abortions as he could, prosecutors said. State regulators ignored complaints about him and failed to visit or inspect his clinic since 1993, but no charges were warranted against them, District Attorney Seth Williams said.
Dr. Gosnell "induced labor, forced the live birth of viable babies in the sixth, seventh, eighth month of pregnancy and then killed those babies by cutting into the back of the neck with scissors and severing their spinal cord," Mr. Williams said.
Mr. Williams said patients were subjected to squalid and barbaric conditions at Dr. Gosnell's Women's Medical Society.
Authorities went to investigate drug-related complaints at the clinic last year and stumbled on what Mr. Williams called a "house of horrors."
"There were bags and bottles holding aborted fetuses were scattered throughout the building," Mr. Williams said. "There were jars, lining shelves, with severed feet that he kept for no medical purpose."
The clinic was shut down and Dr. Gosnell's medical license was suspended after the raid.
Workers, some of whom were also charged with murder, were untrained and unlicensed, including a high-school student who performed anesthesia with potentially lethal narcotics, Mr. Williams said.
Dr. Gosnell and nine other employees are in custody, authorities said.
Dr. Gosnell has been named in at least 10 malpractice suits, including one over the death of a woman who died of sepsis and a perforated uterus.
that's just sickening. God will get that fucker. (just my opinion)
Gosnell has been named in at least 10 malpractice suits, but Williams said state regulators ignored complaints about his clinic and that the office hadn't been inspected since 1993.
Patients endured barbaric procedures at the hands of the twisted doctor, officials charged.
Police stumbled into the grisly scene at Gosnell's clinic last year after responding to a drug-related complaint.
His medical license was then suspended and the clinic shut down.
OMG! Oh God those poor babies. The part about the scissors is really freakin' me out. Oh God. Jesus Christ, people can be so awful.
For those that believe in pro-choice, late term abortion is all part of the package. Not necessarily from this monster, but it is legal in some states and our President is all for it.
This fucker needs to have a pair of scissors plunged in the back of his head and his spinal cord severed.
(01-19-2011, 04:28 PM)FAHQTOO Wrote: For those that believe in pro-choice, late term abortion is all part of the package.
Bull fucking shit. I'm pro-choice but I would be 100% in favor of banning late term abortions. I'm not sure exactly where the line should be drawn (2, 2 1⁄2 months?) but I absolutely think there should be a line.
There's not enough punishment in the world for that sick bastard. Fuck!
(01-19-2011, 04:28 PM)FAHQTOO Wrote: For those that believe in pro-choice, late term abortion is all part of the package.
Bull fucking shit. I'm pro-choice but I would be 100% in favor of banning late term abortions. I'm not sure exactly where the line should be drawn (2, 2 1⁄2 months?) but I absolutely think there should be a line.
There's not enough punishment in the world for that sick bastard. Fuck!
It's not "Bull fucking shit" it's a fucking fact. The fact that you don't agree with late term abortion is irrelevant. I'm not getting into an huge fucking abortion is right or wrong debate. I stated a fact and there's no arguing the ugly truth that goes with it. I believe that most states only allow abortions till the end of the 1st trimester.
I can't think of one single reason for anyone to have a late term abortion. If you carry it for that long, why not give birth and give it up for adoption?
Why weren't the mothers charged with murder, too? They drove to the clinics pregnant and left their murdered babies behind. He didn't abduct them, they paid him to kill the babies. Fucking people are animals.
(03-15-2013, 07:12 PM)aussiefriend Wrote: You see Duchess, I have set up a thread to discuss something and this troll is behaving just like Riotgear did.
I think every state allows abortions untill the 2nd trimester. The 16 week mark is when they test for down syndrome and chromosomal abnormalities and a woman has up untill 24 weeks to have an abortion if there are any birth defects. I was under the impression that anything after that was illegal in every state.
Besides for that, how in the fuck did this lunatic get away without having his clinic inspected since 1993? I think the state regulators should also be charged.
(01-19-2011, 06:22 PM)FAHQTOO Wrote: It's not "Bull fucking shit" it's a fucking fact. The fact that you don't agree with late term abortion is irrelevant.
No, it's not a fact and what I said is entirely relevant. You said that late term abortion is part of the package if you're pro-choice and I'm saying it isn't. I don't know the numbers (and I'm too lazy right now to look it up ) but I do know that many people who are pro-choice would be happy to see a ban on late term abortion. It's an awful, barbaric procedure.
(01-19-2011, 06:22 PM)FAHQTOO Wrote: It's not "Bull fucking shit" it's a fucking fact. The fact that you don't agree with late term abortion is irrelevant.
No, it's not a fact and what I said is entirely relevant. You said that late term abortion is part of the package if you're pro-choice and I'm saying it isn't. I don't know the numbers (and I'm too lazy right now to look it up ) but I do know that many people who are pro-choice would be happy to see a ban on late term abortion. It's an awful, barbaric procedure.
I never said I didn't agree with you...all I said was that it's a fact that LTA do happen. Do you think the doc in question is the only monster out there doing these kind of abortions? There are plenty of greedy bastards out there trying to make a buck off the poor people who can't get decent medical attention. If this guy hasn't been checked out since 1992 or 3, how many others are doing the same thing?
I'm not sure if any states allow LTA on demand just because the mother changed her mind at the last minute, but you know there are shady docs out there doing it if people come up with the cash to get it done and want it. There are certain guidelines for getting a LTA...mostly that the mothers life is in danger...it sure the hell didn't stop this guy.
(01-19-2011, 06:42 PM)Cracker Wrote: Why weren't the mothers charged with murder, too? They drove to the clinics pregnant and left their murdered babies behind. He didn't abduct them, they paid him to kill the babies. Fucking people are animals.
this is only a guess..because according to reports he "treated" the poor, minorities, and immigrants. they probably were somewhat ignorant and thought he was a legit doctor.
these are the people who should be charged and thrown out of their jobs on their asses:
State regulators ignored complaints about him and failed to visit or inspect his clinic since 1993.
(01-19-2011, 07:23 PM)FAHQTOO Wrote: I never said I didn't agree with you...all I said was that it's a fact that LTA do happen. Do you think the doc in question is the only monster out there doing these kind of abortions? There are plenty of greedy bastards out there trying to make a buck off the poor people who can't get decent medical attention. If this guy hasn't been checked out since 1992 or 3, how many others are doing the same thing?
I'm not sure if any states allow LTA on demand just because the mother changed her mind at the last minute, but you know there are shady docs out there doing it if people come up with the cash to get it done and want it. There are certain guidelines for getting a LTA...mostly that the mothers life is in danger...it sure the hell didn't stop this guy.
Well, no, you said that LTA were part of the pro-choice package which is where we disagreed but I absolutely agree with your statements above. I can't even THINK about LTA's without getting sick to my stomach. I honestly don't know if I can even justify them where the mother's life is in danger (save the baby or save the mother?). Blurg. And any doctor who practices them illegally and preys on poor desperate women? Or worse, this guy? Who actually committed murder? Death is too good for those "doctors". It hurts for my mind to even go there.
Sooo, it's OK to drive to a clinic for a Late Term Abortion if the mom is poor and ignorant? Who the fuck do you think goes to the fucking clinics? Smart, rich women?
WTF? Shame on the doctor and not the fucking whores who paid for that to be done to their own children?
No wonder Dick thinks women are fucking stupid. Y'all blame the fucked up doctor give the baby-killing bitches a pass.
I'm pro-choice, btw, but not as a form of birth control or a way to get rid of a baby when you don't feel like being pregnant anymore and change your mind six months in. They are babies in the third trimester. The women, poor and stupid and immigrants that they are, are to blame. If there are no clients, there is no business.
(03-15-2013, 07:12 PM)aussiefriend Wrote: You see Duchess, I have set up a thread to discuss something and this troll is behaving just like Riotgear did.
(01-20-2011, 01:29 AM)Cracker Wrote: Sooo, it's OK to drive to a clinic for a Late Term Abortion if the mom is poor and ignorant? Who the fuck do you think goes to the fucking clinics? Smart, rich women?
WTF? Shame on the doctor and not the fucking whores who paid for that to be done to their own children?
No wonder Dick thinks women are fucking stupid. Y'all blame the fucked up doctor give the baby-killing bitches a pass.
I'm pro-choice, btw, but not as a form of birth control or a way to get rid of a baby when you don't feel like being pregnant anymore and change your mind six months in. They are babies in the third trimester. The women, poor and stupid and immigrants that they are, are to blame. If there are no clients, there is no business.
Back-up. Please tell me where I said any of that? I don't think LTA are okay PERIOD. And of course, the mothers who are requesting these procedures are equally guilty (and maybe moreso). I was just agreeing that there are some doctors that may prey on poor women (backroom abortions and all that) but yeah, the mothers bare (or should bare) at least equal responsibility if not more. For the most part, I think LTA's should be banned...entirely. Illegal for the mother, illegal for the doctor.
(01-20-2011, 01:19 AM)username Wrote: And any doctor who practices them illegally and preys on poor desperate women?
Okay, my mistake. My reference to "desperate women" here seems to imply that the women are blameless victims.
Not. Women shouldn't "oops" accidentally get pregnant. Granted there might be doctors that prey on them after the fact but it shouldn't have been a factor in the first place.
Crackerooo, it's OK to drive to a clinic for a Late Term Abortion if the mom is poor and ignorant? Who the fuck do you think goes to the fucking clinics? Smart, rich women?
Cracker, if you were replying to my comment, i probably didn't state my point well enough. i meant being ignorant, they may have thought they were having a legal medical abortion by a qualified doctor. the DA would need to prove the intent to murder, not the intent to abort.
Victim: Karnamaya Mongar, 41, died at Dr Gosnell's clinic
lengthy but informative. names other defendants.
describes the woman who died (photo post #17). she had been referred to the "clinic".
(CNN) -- Pennsylvania's newly elected governor offered a harsh assessment and vowed decisive action Thursday to determine why authorities took so long to root out an abortion clinic at which at least one mother died and seven viable babies were killed.
Earlier in the day, a Pennsylvania district court judge ordered the head of the West Philadelphia office, Dr. Kermit Gosnell, be held in jail without bail after he was arraigned on eight murder counts and a host of other charges. Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams earlier called the facility "a house of horrors" that performed "botched and illegal abortions" and was full of containers of fetuses' body parts.
Bail was similarly denied for at least two others purportedly involved in illicit and deadly actions at the practice, according to a statement from the district attorney. Bail was set for the other six defendants -- including Gosnell's wife and sister-in-law -- at $150,000 to $2 million.
The charges against Gosnell came to light a day earlier, which was also Gov. Tom Corbett's first full day in office.
That Wednesday, the Republican governor read the grand jury report and ordered two department head nominees "to find out what went wrong and to come up with where the breakdowns were and an action plan to fix them," his spokesman Kevin Harley said.
"It's deplorable, and you can't believe it," Harley said. "There were failures in the system, and those failures are going to be addressed."
All those arraigned Thursday had some role at the Women's Medical Society clinic, which was run by Gosnell and served mostly low-income minority women, Seth Williams said.
The grand jury investigation determined that health and licensing officials had received repeated reports about Gosnell's practices for two decades, but taken no action -- even after learning that women died during routine abortions -- the district attorney's statement said.
Two state agencies -- the Department of Health and the Department of State -- have primary oversight over such clinics.
Corbett has asked Secretary of State-nominee Carol Aichele and Secretary of Health-nominee Dr. Eli Avila for an assessment of the situation and policy recommendations by Monday.
"We're being proactive, he's not going to fool around here," Harley said. "If laws need to be changed, then laws need to be changed."
Harley said the governor's pro-life position is irrelevant to the discussion, stressing, "This is about public safety."
The district attorney alleges seven babies born alive in the sixth, seventh and eighth months of their mothers' pregnancies were killed at the Women's Medical Society practice with scissors used to cut their spinal cords.
On Thursday, Gosnell's attorney, William Brennan, stressed that his client should be "presumed innocent." Gosnell is next scheduled to appear in court on February 9.
"No one expected these (charges)," Brennan said. "There should be no rush to judgment, no matter how salacious (they) are."
Besides seven first-degree murder charges related to those infants' deaths, Gosnell is charged with third-degree murder in the death of 41-year-old Karnamaya Mongar. She died November 20, 2009, after overdosing on anesthetics prescribed by the doctor, Seth Williams said.
Mongar's family filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Gosnell's practice seeking damages, attorney Bernard Smalley said.
Born in Bhutan, Mongar had spent 18 years living in a bamboo hut in a Nepalese refugee camp before going to the United States in July 2009 as part of a humanitarian resettlement program, Smalley said. The mother of four and grandmother of one was 19 weeks into her pregnancy when, after getting a referral from a Washington, D.C., medical clinic, she went to Gosnell's practice.
There, Smalley said, "an unlicensed high school student" -- who got instructions from Gosnell over a cell phone -- gave the woman anesthesia, and there was no equipment to resuscitate her once things went wrong.
"These children have to grow up without their mother, you have a husband who is going to have to go on without his wife," Smalley said of Mongar's family. "There will be justice at the end of the day, but at what price? They've lost a loved one who can never come back."
Smalley told HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell that he similarly brought a negligence case against Gosnell about 20 years ago, yet he continued to practice.
While a website indicates that he's a graduate of Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, Gosnell is not a board-certified obstetrician or gynecologist, DA Williams said.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System, one of the largest health care networks in Philadelphia, said in a statement Thursday that it began alerting authorities in 1999 to look into Gosnell after its doctors saw some of his patients.
"Like all in the medical community, we are shocked at the additional revelations," the statement said, adding that the health system has cooperated fully with investigators. "(We) hope that the courts will act in the best interest of patients."
Law enforcement officers only began focusing on the case while investigating tips that Gosnell had illegally sold thousands of prescriptions for OxyContin and other narcotics to "patients" he never examined, Williams said. This was despite the fact that the doctor was rarely present, instead having untrained, unsupervised workers routinely inject sedatives into women like Mongar, he said.
Besides the murder charges, Gosnell is charged with infanticide, conspiracy, abortion at 24 or more weeks of pregnancy, corpse abuse, corruption of minors, solicitation and other related offenses.
His wife, Pearl Gosnell, 49 -- who also doesn't have a medical license -- also faces charges of providing an abortion at 24 or more weeks and conspiracy, among other charges. Her bail was set Thursday at $1 million.
Bail is $250,000 for Elizabeth Hampton, the doctor's sister-in-law, who is charged with hindering prosecution, perjury and obstruction of justice.
Lynda Williams, 42, and Adrienne Moten, 33, were ordered Thursday held without bail, like Gosnell.
Lynda Williams, who routinely performed illegal operations and gave anesthesia without a license, is charged with third-degree murder in Mongar's death, as well as murder charges for the death of a viable baby, the district attorney said. Moten, who was also unlicensed, is charged with murder in the death of a baby born alive.
Other employees arraigned Thursday were:
-- Sherry West, 54, who had her bail set at $2 million for alleged third-degree murder, providing an abortion at 24 or more weeks and other related offenses.
-- Eileen O'Neil, 54, a medical school graduate who allegedly posed as a doctor at the clinic without certification or a license. Her bail is $1 million, after being charged with theft by deception, conspiracy, perjury and false swearing.
-- Maddline Joe, 53, the practice's office manager, who is charged with conspiracy and had her bail set at $250,000
-- Tina Baldwin, 45, whose bail was set at a $150,000 after she was charged with racketeering, conspiracy and corruption of a minor. Among other allegations, she allegedly allowed her 15-year-old daughter to administer anesthesia.
Steven Masoof, 48, had faced murder charges for the deaths of two babies born alive, as well as conspiracy and other charges. The medical school graduate, who did not have any license or certification, had not been arraigned as of 3 p.m. Thursday.
Prosecutors in Philadelphia are debating if they want to seek the death penalty in the case of abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell.
Gosnell was in court Friday in Philadelphia for a hearing, where he asked for a public defender. That request was denied by the court.
Prosecutors provided records at the hearing indicating the Gosnell and his wife have 16 properties valued "in the millions," including a bay front home in Brigantine, N.J. worth over $900,000.
Prosecutors also disclosed after the hearing that they could have charged Gosnell with a "hundred murders."
Gosnell was ordered to hire an attorney for next Wednesday;s preliminary hearing after he unsuccessfully asked for a public defender for he and his wife.
The district attorney's office is still debating if it will seek the death penalty in this case.
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has 217 death-penalty convictions on record, but the state hasn't executed anyone since mass-killer Gary Heidnik in 1999.
Jury selection began Monday in the murder trial of a Philadelphia abortion provider, a potentially sensitive task since the case involves both abortion and the death penalty.
Dr. Kermit Gosnell is charged with eight counts of murder. He's charged with third-degree murder in a woman's 2009 death during a botched abortion, and first-degree murder for allegedly killing seven viable babies after they were born alive. Gosnell faces the death penalty if convicted on the latter counts.
He has pleaded not guilty, and insists that he helped many vulnerable women and teens get medical care, including second-term abortions not offered at many clinics.
Pennsylvania abortion laws ban abortions after 24 weeks. Authorities believe at least some of the abortions performed at Gosnell's clinic involved third-trimester pregnancies. The 2011 grand jury report details one case in which Gosnell allegedly joked the baby was so big it could walk to the bus stop.
The nearly 300-page report described the clinic as filthy, blood-stained and macabre, with a collection of fetal body parts kept in jars.
A medical assistant told a jury Tuesday that she snipped the spines of at least 10 babies during unorthodox abortions at a West Philadelphia clinic. And she said Dr. Kermit Gosnell and another employee did the same to terminate pregnancies.
Adrienne Moton's testimony came in the capital murder trial of Gosnell, the clinic owner, who is on trial in the deaths of a patient and seven babies. Prosecutors accuse him of killing late-term, viable babies after they were delivered alive, in violation of state abortion laws.
Gosnell's lawyer denies the murder charge and disputes that any babies were born alive. He also challenges the gestational age of the aborted fetuses, calling them inexact estimates.
Moton, the first employee to testify, sobbed as she recalled taking a cellphone photograph of one baby left in her work area. She thought he could have survived, given his size and pinkish color. She had measured him at nearly 30 weeks.
"The aunt felt it was just best for her (the mother's) future," Moton testified.
Gosnell later joked that the baby was so big he could have walked to the bus stop, she said.
Moton, 35, sobbed as she described her work at the clinic. Because of problems at home, she had moved in with Gosnell and his third wife during high school, and she went to work for him from 2005 to 2008. She earned about $10 an hour, off the books, to administer drugs, perform sonograms, help with abortions and dispose of fetal remains. Workers got $20 bonuses for second-term abortions on Saturdays, when a half-dozen were sometimes performed.
She once had to kill a baby delivered in a toilet, cutting its neck with scissors, she said. Asked if she knew that was wrong, she said, "At first I didn't."
Moton has pleaded guilty to third-degree murder, which carries a 20- to 40-year term, as well as conspiracy and other charges. She has been in prison since early 2011, when Philadelphia prosecutors released the harrowing grand jury report on Gosnell's Women's Medical Center and arrested the doctor, wife Pearl and eight current or former employees. Most of them are expected to testify.
![[Image: Zy3rKpW.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Zy3rKpW.png)
) but I do know that many people who are pro-choice would be happy to see a ban on late term abortion. It's an awful, barbaric procedure. 
ooo, it's OK to drive to a clinic for a Late Term Abortion if the mom is poor and ignorant? Who the fuck do you think goes to the fucking clinics? Smart, rich women?