Politics & Current Events
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Guilty verdict
Any thoughts or opinions about the guilty verdict for the Philadelphia abortion doctor?
Dr. Kermit Gosnell was found guilty of first degree murder in the deaths of three babies. He could get the death penalty.
I haven't seen anything about this on the board.
Re: Guilty verdict
He didn't get the death penalty, he got life in prison for giving up his right to appeal. Which is probably for the best because he's older and will probably die sooner in jail and appealing the death penalty would cost a lot of $$$.
I think what he did was horrendous but I admit I didn't really hear about it until recently so I don't know a lot of the background.
Yes, I heard he struck a deal to avoid the possibility of the death penalty.
I think it is surprising that so many people have not heard about this story.
I heard about this on the radio the other day. I had to change the channel, the gruesome details were too much for me.
So much for the Hippocratic Oath.
This is one thing both sides of the pro-life/choice debate can agree about. His actions were deplorable and disgusting.
But Vlagirl, you realize those pictures were dropped into that article for that very reason, right? To shock and trigger a gag reflex.
They didn't need to be in that article...too much for me
That was my point. It was a cheap and lazy tactic that I hate.
Who hasn't heard about it?
It's a horrific, horrific story. Although I am a bit annoyed that the woman he killed seems to merit little to no mention whatsoever in the press. The babies weren't his only victims.
As stated in this quote, some people are only now hearing about it.
As far as the woman who died, the doctor was only convicted of manslaughter in her death. I guess the court saw the killing of the babies as intentional murder. But the woman probably died by accident, not intentionally.
I heard about it shortly after the trial started, but hadn't heard about him or his arrest prior to that unlike some other big cases that are in the news. There are complaints about him going back to the '80s. I'm surprised it took this long for him to end up in jail.
You mean like the woman who died?
Pennsylvania bans abortions past 24 weeks after the woman's last menstrual period but grants an exception for the life/health of the mother.
http://www.guttmacher.org/statecenter/spibs/spib_PLTA.pdf
The law makes it illegal to *perform* an abortion, not to seek or obtain one, though. So the only people being arrested would be the medical professionals who performed such an abortion.
This case is a great example of what happens when you ban abortion, though. Women will still try to get them, except now they'll get them from dirty, unlicensed, unregulated, underground, occasionally sociopathic "doctors" such as this one.I'm not surprised at all. Poor women complaining about terrible conditions in an abortion clinic that serves the poor? Who's going to care about that?
Here's an interesting article about why this is more about poverty than abortion:
http://healthland.time.com/2011/01/20/why-the-pa-abortion-docs-case-is-about-poverty-not-roe-v-wade/
Ok, thank you. That makes sense now. And yes, I was referring to the other women, not the one that died. I am pro-choice and always have been but never had thought about the repercussions for women seeking abortions past the legalized time period.
I think it's a lot more palatable for pro-lifers to demonize the doctors rather than the women, which is why performing certain abortions is a crime but not obtaining them. Just try asking what an appropriate prison sentence should be for a woman who gets an abortion at 25 weeks is - most can't begin to answer because they never thought about the actual practice of putting women in prison for trying to get abortions.
Are some of you saying this is what you get because late term abortions are outlawed?
I guess I am just obtuse because I can't see why people are horrified by the death of these babies, but would be fine with it if they were killed a few minutes earlier while still unborn. I don't see why it would then be okay.
The babies would still feel the same pain whether born or partially born or still in the womb. The babies are the same. The location of the babies is the only thing different.
I'm saying that when you outlaw abortions, desperate women are going to get them anyway. Except that they'll get them from illegal, unlicensed, completely unregulated "doctors" like this sociopath.
As to your point, babies in the womb don't feel pain before about 35 weeks (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2035521/Babies-feel-pain-womb-early-35-weeks.html). And I don't know anyone who is comfortable with abortion at or after 35 weeks (and for reference, the third trimester starts at 27 weeks) except in the most dire of circumstances. But even if they were, the vast majority of abortions at this stage are performed by injecting the fetus with a solution that stops the heart almost instantly. So, no pain.