Woman’s Abortion Death in Kansas Will be Subject of State Investigation
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
February 21, 2005
Topeka, KS (LifeNews.com) — A woman who died last month after a botched abortion at a late-term abortion facility in Kansas will have her case investigated by a state medical board. However, a Kansas pro-life group questions whether the board will conduct a timely investigation.
A 32 year-old woman was transported to Wesley Medical Center on January 13 from the abortion business owned and operated by late-term abortion practitioner George Tiller. She arrived at the hospital with severe hemorrhaging and died a few days later.
Confirming the death, on February 2, Governor Kathleen Sebelius sent a memo to Larry Buening, Executive Director of the Kansas Board of Healing Arts (BOHA) and asked the agency to investigate "the circumstances of the death."
However, Kansans for Life Executive Director Mary Kay Culp is concerned that the BOHA will drag its feet in investigating the case.
"Use of the Board of Healing Arts alone to investigate this death makes us question just how serious the Governor is about getting to the bottom of the circumstances surrounding the death in Wichita," Culp said.
She pointed to a report released last week that concluded an investigation against another abortion practitioner, Krishna Rajanna of Kansas City. Culp complains that the investigation took over a year to complete.
The BOHA found that Rajanna failed to maintain a clean working environment at his abortion facility, improperly disposed of medical waste, maintained medications that were expired, dispensed medications without proper labeling, and violated medical standards for sedating patients.
Rajanna was fined only $1,000 by the BOHA and told to obtain training in providing life support, indicating to Culp that the board was willing to allow him to go without such training during the investigation.
"BOHA is mandating how Rajanna practices, and what inspections and training he must undergo, without closing his doors until he meets expectations," Culp said.
Kansas for Life took their complaint about Rajanna to BOHA after concerns from local law enforcement to the state agency "fell on deaf ears," Culp indicated.
Culp faulted the DOHA for slow investigations in other cases against Kansas abortion practitioners and for not keeping records on the number of deaths from abortions or botched abortions that occur in the state.
According to 911 transcripts a local pro-life obtained in the January 13th death, Tiller employee Marguerite Reed called for an ambulance after the abortion was botched.
The record indicates Reed was "very evasive" and "refused to give any information about the patient."
Later, Reed told 911 operators the woman suffered from "pain above the belly button." Reed said the woman was awake and alert and did not suffer from chest pain.
Related web sites:
Kansans for Life – https://www.kfl.org
View the 911 transcript –
https://www.operationrescue.org/gallery/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album09&id=911_Transcript
