Minnesota Planned Parenthood Faces Court on Violating Abortion Law 
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
September 21, 2005
St. Paul, MN (LifeNews.com) — In Minnesota, an abortion business must notify the parents of an underage teenager who is considering an abortion. A Planned Parenthood abortion center felt a girl just shy of her 18th birthday should allow it to skirt the law and perform the abortion anyway. Now it faces a lawsuit from the girl’s parents.
A Ramsey County judge will listen to arguments today from Planned Parenthood that he should dismiss the lawsuit.
The teenager, identified only as Anne Doe, was just short of her 18th birthday when she visited the abortion center. She ended up having the abortion at the St. Paul Planned Parenthood in 2002.
Planned Parenthood considered the teen an adult because of the closeness of her birthday and because she had given birth in a previous pregnancy.
The teens parents, who reside in New Ulm, were upset to learn after the fact that their daughter had an abortion without their knowledge. According to an Associated Press report, the parents sued the abortion business for violating Minnesota law. They seek $50,000 in damages.
A Planned Parenthood spokeswoman told AP that the teen was legally considered an adult at the time.
The Minnesota Department of Health says there were 13,788 abortions reported in 2004, compared to 14,174 in 2003 — a decrease of nearly three percent.
The abortion report covers 2004, the first full year the Woman’s Right to Know law was in place. The law requires abortion centers to inform women of abortion risks, complications and alternatives. It also provides women with facts on fetal development throughout gestation, the facts of fetal pain and other vital information.
In 2004, a total of 15,859 pregnant women sought out information about abortion services, but more than 2,100 decided against having an abortion.
Related web sites:
Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life – https://www.mccl.org
