Abortion Clinic Operates Illegally Despite State-Ordered Closure

State   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Mar 18, 2013   |   3:39PM   |   Birmingham, AL

An abortion clinic in Birmingham, Alabama is operating illegally despite a state mandated order to close.

A coalition of pro-life groups, including Operation Rescue, CEC for Life, Life Legal Defense Foundation, Priests for Life, and others have documented numerous problems of women being injured by abortions at the New Women All Women abortion clinic at the hands of abortion practitioner Bruce Elliot Norman. However, the clinic is advertising for and conducting abortions in violation of Alabama law that requires any facility advertising as an abortion clinic to be licensed by the state.

They also say the abortion clinic is operating in violation of a closure order issued in April, 2012, by the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) due to massive health and safety violations.

On Tuesday, several pro-life groups will hold a press conference in front of the New Woman All Women facility regarding the findings by Life Legal Defense Foundation, a pro-life legal group, against NWAW and the Department of Public Health’s total lack of action. They will call for state officials to shut down the abortion business.

“This abortion clinic appears to be operating illegally with the full knowledge of the ADPH,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman. “It is intolerable that they would allow this criminal abortion business to endanger women by operating in brazen defiance of the law.”

Rev. Terry Gensemer of CEC for Life, said pro-life residents of Alabama “would like to know exactly how the Department of Public Health justifies not only allowing a facility without any license to continue illegally advertising as an abortion provider, but also explain how that facility is now blatantly offering abortions to patients.”

“If NWAW is no longer a licensed abortion provider, then what is abortionist Bruce Norman doing here with a full parking lot on a Saturday morning? And why isn’t ADPH doing anything to stop it? These are questions we need answered, and we need them answered now,” he said.

Allison Aranda, an attorney with Life Legal Defense Foundation who is representing the pro-life groups, has formally notified the ADPH that the abortion clinic has resumed abortions without a license and provided evidence in support of that claim. So far the ADPH has ignored the information.

According to information from Operation Rescue, in a Consent Order last year, owner Diane Derzis and her associate Norman were ordered not to have any involvement in the Birmingham clinic. Two attempts by a close associate of Derzis’ to relicense the clinic failed. The most recent application for licensure was denied just last month. After that, Derzis reopened her abortion clinic in violation of the ADPH order.

On January 21, 2012, pro-life activists photographed two women being carried out of the clinic’s back door to ambulances waiting in a trash-strewn alley, and obtained the 911 recordings that indicated both women had been overdosed by clinic staff. The pro-life groups filed a complaint with the ADPH which conducted an inspection and discovered that a third woman was also hospitalized on that same day suffering from abortion complications and 76-pages of other violations.

“We demand that the ADPH to immediately close New Woman All Women and take whatever legal action is necessary to ensure that the owner Diane Derzis is never allowed to operate another abortion clinic again, even if that means bringing criminal charges and locking her in jail,” said Newman.

Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, also chimed in.

“The abortion industry is again acting in character. When you kill babies, you don’t care when someone tells you to stop. You can’t practice vice virtuously,” Fr. Frank said. “The abortion lobby always thinks it is above the law. We therefore call for a thorough investigation of the New Woman All Women facility by the State of Alabama, and strong action to enforce the law.”

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Derzis is also the owner of the last abortion clinic in the state of Mississippi. That clinic is not in compliance with new state law and could close as well.

Pro-life advocates are urged to contact the Alabama Department of Public Health and demand they take immediate action to halt New Woman All Women’s illegal abortion operations.

Contact Information:

Brian Hale, ADPH Assistant General Counsel
Voice: 334-206-5209 | FAX: 334-206-5874
E-mail: [email protected]