Outcry to defund Planned Parenthood reignited after videos were made public
The B.C. Catholic
The activists behind a series of undercover videos at Planned Parenthood that some have called “truly horrific” are now under fire.
David Daleiden, 27, and Sandra Merritt, 62, of the Centre for Medical Progress, have been indicted in Houston on one count of tampering with a government record and one count of seeking to buy human organs.
“These people broke the law to spread malicious lies about Planned Parenthood in order to advance their extreme anti-abortion political agenda,” said Planned Parenthood spokesman Eric Ferrero.
“It’s become totally clear the only people who engaged in wrongdoing are the criminals behind this fraud, and we’re glad they’re being held accountable.”
Daleiden and Merritt were part of a nearly three-year-long sting operation, in which they created a false company and identification and entered meetings with Planned Parenthood executives to find out if they sell fetal tissue and to catch it on camera.
They released a series of videos called Human Capital they say expose the abortion provider’s practices of selling the body parts of aborted children.
“A lot of people want intact hearts these days,” Deborah Nucatola, a senior Planned Parenthood medical director, said in a video. “Like I said, always as many intact livers as possible.”
The edited videos and full footage were made public. What followed was a reignited outcry to defund Planned Parenthood.
Chicago-based Pro-Life Action League called for nation-wide protests Aug. 21 and 22. The group’s executive director, Eric Scheidler, said more than 58,000 people turned up to rallies in 240 cities, while another 102 cities didn’t count the crowds.
Planned Parenthood sued Jan. 14, maintaining it “never sold fetal tissue or facilitated fetal tissue donation in order to make a profit.”
In response to the indictment Jan. 25, the Centre for Medical Progress, a non-profit organization, says they did nothing against the law.
“The Centre for Medical Progress uses the same undercover techniques that investigative journalists have used for decades in exercising our First Amendment writes to freedom of speech and of the press and follows all applicable laws,” they said in a statement.
“We respect the processes of the Harris County District Attorney, and note that buying fetal tissue requires a seller as well. Planned Parenthood still cannot deny the admissions from their leadership about fetal organ sales captured on video for all the world to see.”
The felony charge carries a prison sentence between two and 20 years. The grand jury that indicted Daleiden and Merritt did not charge Planned Parenthood.
An online petition to drop charges and investigate the abortion provider instead had almost 90,000 signatures by the afternoon of Jan. 28.
