Abortion Cause of Sterility Among Russian Couples
News Briefs
Arizona Abortionist Charged In Woman’s Death In a follow up to a case we reported on in the Summer 1998 issue of The Post-Abortion Review, Arizona abortionist John Biskind has been charged with manslaughter in the case of a woman who bled to death after Biskind performed an abortion on her. Also included in the charges is the administrator of the clinic where Biskind worked.
Abortion Connection Found in Murder Case A woman charged with first-degree murder for her son’s death may have killed him in connection with an abortion, police have found.
Denver police say that Erika Arroya had an abortion shortly before she drowned her son, Armando Villalobos, in the bathtub last September. Her boyfriend, who was not Armando’s father, had threatened to leave her if she did not give the child up, police said, because Armando reminded him of his aborted child.
The boyfriend, who has not been charged in the case, said that he meant only that Arroya should leave Armando with his father or grandparents.
Clinic Owner Admits Fraud, Unsanitary Practices A New Jersey abortion clinic owner accused of defrauding five insurance companies admitted in court that he allowed clinic personnel to reuse disposable medical instruments during abortion procedures. Alan Weiselberg, a Florida man who operated an abortion clinic in Woodward, NJ from 1988 to 1991, has also admitted to filing false Medicaid claims for abortions performed at his facility. U.S. Attorney Faith Hochberg called the case “a blatant, irresponsible disregard of basic medical and sanitary procedures.”
Abortion Cause of Sterility Among Russian Couples, Health Minister Says A Russian health minister has said that almost one in five Russian couples are sterile due to abortion, a Russian news agency reported. Deputy health minister Tatiana Stukolova said that between 15 and 20 percent of Russian couples today cannot have children.
Stukolova attributed the high sterility rate to abortion, which under the Soviet regime was the country’s primary form of birth control. Abortion statistics from 1997 show that approximately two out of three women suffered from health complications after abortion.
Police Accused of Trying to Hide Abortion Death Police have been accused of trying to cover up a woman’s death from legal abortion, the New York Post reported. The woman died after having an abortion on Dec. 2 at the Women’s Medical Pavilion, a Brooklyn abortion clinic. The state health department has said that the clinic is also under investigation for a Nov. 14 abortion in which a woman suffered a perforated uterus.
A police department source told the newspaper that police officers tried to cover up the abortion death by not including any mention of the abortion in their daily report. Instead, they listed only the address where the abortion had taken place.
Companies in Mexico Forcing Women to Take Pregnancy Tests, Human Rights Group Says A human rights group has accused international companies operating in Mexico of forcing women applying for work in factories along the U.S.-Mexico border to take pregnancy tests. A report issued in December by Human Rights Watch also says that these companies violate Mexican labor laws by refusing to hire pregnant women.
Non-Physician Fined for Performing Illegal Abortion An Ohio woman got off with a fine after performing an illegal abortion on a fifteen-year-old girl. Melissa Henderson of Cleveland was fined $250 and sentenced to two years probation for performing the abortion, but prosecutors said they could not make a felony case because the girl consented to the abortion.
Study Shows Need for Better Counseling A study of South African women found that poor pre-abortion counseling can be a factor in women’s emotional reactions to abortion. Researchers at the University of the Free State say that women who did not have “sufficient opportunity to make a well-considered decision” about abortion are more likely to suffer from post-abortion syndrome. The study highlighted the need for better counseling both before and after abortion, and more support for women who want to carry the pregnancy to term.
Post-Abortion Leader Offers Pilgrimage to Poland Theresa Bonapartis, who works with the Sisters of Life’s post-abortion ministry in New York, has announced a “Pilgrimage of Mercy” to Poland for those have lost children to abortion. The pilgrimage will include visits to the Chapel of Divine Mercy and the convent of Blessed Sr. Faustina, St. Maximilian Kolbe’s cell at Auschwitz, and the shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows.
The pilgrimage’s spiritual director will be Fr. Marius Koch of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. The pilgrimage will be held October 10-17, 1999. For more information, contact Canterbury Tours at 800-653-0017. All reservations will be kept strictly confidential.
