Abortion Provider's Life: Tight Security, The Threat Of Violence

LeRoy Carhart takes on abortion patients that would have gone to his friend, Dr. George Tiller, except that Tiller was murdered two years ago. He practices in Nebraska, except when he has to go to Maryland almost weekly because Nebraska passed restrictions aimed pretty directly at him. He used to have a farm, but it was burned down, killing a dog, cat, and 17 horses, and anti-abortion opponents claimed responsibility.

According to a 2009 profile of Carhart, he employs a full-time security consultant, “goes out publicly only on short, unscheduled trips and rarely eats out (and when he does, he says he stays less than 30 minutes). Dr. Carhart, an Air Force veteran, said his daughter was wed this fall on a nearby military base, mainly for security and privacy.” All of the violent threats and political and legal onslaughts only appear to have hardened his resolve to be there for the most difficult cases.

Carhart hasn’t said much about his own work recently, though his name is on two important Supreme Court cases, but he gave an interview to The Washington Post this past weekend. The occasion: Anti-abortion groups are starting nine days of protests Saturday, which they’re calling the Summer Of Mercy 2.0. The first one was 20 years ago — outside George Tiller’s clinic.

And here is what Troy Newman of Operation Rescue, which is obsessed with Carhart, says in the story of all abortions: “Ninety-eight percent are simply elective procedures for mothers who want to have dead children.”

In fact, according to The Post, Carhart is overseeing the addition of STD screenings and adoption counseling to his practice, and “they are looking to partner with agencies that support adoptions by gay and biracial couples as well as single parents.” Which one sounds more like a culture of life?

Neb. Doctor Who Performs Late-In-Pregnancy Abortions In Md. Talks About Future Of Clinic, Security Concerns [WP]