Kansas Sexual Abuse-Abortion Records Case Continues in State Court

State   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Nov 29, 2006   |   9:00AM   |   WASHINGTON, DC

Kansas Sexual Abuse-Abortion Records Case Continues in State Court Email this article
Printer friendly page

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
November 29
, 2006

Topeka, KS (LifeNews.com) — The legal battle between two abortion businesses and the Kansas Attorney General over whether he should have access to abortion records continues. The state’s top attorney, Phill Kline, has been conducting an investigation into whether or not the abortion centers covered up cases of statutory rape with abortions.

A Shawnee County judge who originally allowed Kline to have access to some redacted records submitted legal papers in the case to the Kansas Supreme Court.

District Judge Richard Anderson turned over some of the records to Kline in October and now the abortion facilities want them back and have asked the state’s high court to intervene. The two abortion facilities — a Planned Parenthood business and the center run by late-term abortion practitioner George Tiller in Wichita — named Anderson and Kline in their lawsuit to get the records back.

They also want a special prosecutor to examine how Fox News host Bill O’Reilly obtained information showing that they are doing illegal late-term abortions on women for non-medical reasons. Kansas law only allows them for legitimate medical reasons.

Both Anderson and Kline filed legal papers Monday responded to the case.

Anderson wrote that Kline "stands on firm legal ground" in the records dispute, according to an Associated Press report. He said the high court’s demands in an earlier decision were satisfied when the abortion records were redacted.

"Relevant information is contained in the medical files, which may constitute evidence of possible violations of law," Anderson wrote, according to AP.

He also said he is not providing the court with a full response in the case because he doesn’t want to make confidential information public.

Assistant Attorney General Stephen Maxwell responded for Kline and said the court has no authority to grant a special prosecutor, to investigate Kline or take control of his abortion facility probe.

This isn’t the first time the Kansas Supreme Court has weighed in.

Anderson originally subpoenaed the records for Kline in September 2004, but the abortion centers asked the court to intervene. In February it sent the case back to Anderson with instructions to make sure the records were kept confidential.