Connecticut Report Has Abortions Increasing, Lack of Pro-Life Laws Likely Cause

State   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Jan 22, 2009   |   9:00AM   |   WASHINGTON, DC

Connecticut Report Has Abortions Increasing, Lack of Pro-Life Laws Likely Cause

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 22
, 2009

Hartford, CT (LifeNews.com) — A new report from the Connecticut Catholic Conference indicates the number of abortions in the northeastern state is one the rise. Connecticut’s status as one of the most ten pro-abortion states, by virtue of having few state laws to reduce or limit abortions, likely plays a role in the increase.

The report shows a 12 percent increase in the number of abortions in the state done between 2000 and 2007, even though abortions have declined to nationwide lows.

The pro-life group notes a rise in abortions among all age categories but it is especially concerned about the increase in teen abortions.

Because of that, the state’s Catholic leaders are promoting a bill in the state legislature to allow for parental notification before an abortion can be done on a minor girl. Similar measures in other states have been proven to reduce abortions by as much as about one-third.

Michael Culhane, executive director of the conference, told AP he thinks the measure will have a tough time because the state legislature is historically pro-abortion.

While lawmakers are open to his suggestions on other issues, they are closed-minded when it comes to pro-life legislation.

“But when we approach the General Assembly and we say, ‘How about increasing the mandatory age of counseling by two years, from 15 to 17,’ it’s like we’re cutting the arms and the legs off some of our legislators,” Culhane said.

Susan Yolen, vice president of public affairs and communications for Planned Parenthood of Connecticut, responded to the report and told AP she thinks abortions are on the rise because of the struggling economy.

Yolen also challenged the Catholic bishops on whether sexual abusers are getting secret abortions for teen girls without parental involvement and covering up their crimes.

“I challenge the legitimacy of that concern,” she said. “I don’t have any evidence, nor do I think they have any hard evidence.”

Yet that has happen repeatedly in the state.

The state has seen at least four cases of that happening, with one taking place in December 2007.

Then, a Connecticut pastor was accused of urging a 13-year-old victim in a 2005 case to get an abortion to hide his alleged crime.

A second case involving sexual abuse and abortion involves 51-year-old Steven Infante of New Milford, Connecticut.

He is a gymnastics coach who was indicted on charges that he repeatedly raped one girl and took her for an abortion. He was released after pleading not guilty to the charges.

Prosecutors say Infante had a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl that began at that early age and continued until she was 21. When she turned 17, the girl became pregnant and Infante drove her to a local abortion business.

Prior to that, the employee of an abortion facility in Connecticut issued a guilty plea in a case involving the sexual abuse of three teenage girls.

Former modeling agency owner Michael Britt, who worked as a janitor at the abortion center, was accused of sexually assaulting three teenagers from Norwalk who went to his modeling agency.

He took a 14-year-old to the Summit Women’s Center abortion facility, where he worked and which was located in the same building as his agency.

The Britt case followed just weeks after another abortion-sexual abuse case prompted observers to wonder why abortion facilities are not contacting authorities about the actions.

Kevon Walker, 22, was charged with getting his then 14-year-old girlfriend pregnant. He got the unnamed girl pregnant three times in six months and the girl wound up having three abortions as a result.

However, abortion businesses failed to report the statutory rape to authorities and officials only began investigating Walker’s actions when the victim’s mother contacted them.

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