Man Who Botched Abortions Can’t Change His Name, Judge Rules

State   |   Steven Ertelt   |   May 26, 2005   |   9:00AM   |   WASHINGTON, DC

Man Who Botched Abortions Can’t Change His Name, Judge Rules Email this article
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
May 26, 2005

White Plains, NY (LifeNews.com) — A former abortion practitioner jailed for botched abortions can’t change his name because a judge is concerned the public will think he is a reputable doctor again.

Abu Hayat was tagged as the "Butcher of Avenue A" in the early 1990s for several cases of botched abortion. The most infamous one involved a woman on whom he performed an incomplete abortion. Her daughter was born without a right arm.

Hayat last year presented a request to change his name to Alba D.R. Willobeyeee, but state Supreme Court Justice Nicholas Colabella sided with the state attorney’s office and said the middle initials could confuse the public and mislead them into thinking he was a legitimate doctor.

"This risk is of particular concern in this case, given that the petitioner was convicted of criminal conduct involving illegal abortions," Colabella wrote.

In October 1991, Hayat attempted to perform a third-trimester abortion on Rosa Rodriguez, who was seven months pregnant at the time.

On the second day of the abortion procedure, after complications had begun, Rodriguez gave birth to a baby girl, Ana Rosa Rodriguez. The baby was taken to a local hospital and was released in good medical health, except for her missing arm.

Hayat also tried to frighten Rodriguez into paying $1,500 for the abortion. He reportedly charged Rodriguez $1,000 in cash, plus her passport, green card and jewelry as collateral for the other $500.

Seven months earlier, Hayat kicked out of his office a bleeding 38 year-old woman during the middle of the abortion procedure and with parts of her unborn child still inside of her. Hayat order the woman to leave after learning she and her husband could not afford an additional $500 on top of the $300 they had already paid for the abortion.

The woman was hospitalized, and, according to the Journal News, nearly died of an infection.

After his arrest, dozens of women came forward offering information and evidence that Hayat had damaged and mistreated them during abortions.

The New York Health Department found that one 17 year-old had died of an infection following an abortion he performed and her perforated the uterus of another woman.

Hayat’s medical license was revoked in 1992, though the state of New York was criticized for waiting so long to do so.

According to the Journal News, Hayat was sentenced to between 10 and 20 years in prison. He has been rejected for parole twice and is scheduled to be released in July 2006, though that could be extended.

His attorneys, who say he is suffering from depression and other psychiatric problems, say there is no illegal motive behind the name change. Hayat says he desires the new name because he has become a Christian.

Hayat was a member of the National Abortion Federation, a trade group of abortion businesses and practitioners. The organization came under fire for not doing a better job of monitoring its members.