The first-degree murder trial of Scott Roeder for killing late-term abortionist George Tiller may yield the most robust abortion opponent's criminal defense in decades.
Almost since Roe v. Wade, these cases have ended either in a negotiated guilty plea or in a show trial, in which the judge rammed the conviction through. Even in nonviolent trespassing cases, American courts have refused to permit the accused to raise the "necessity" defense, which is routinely permitted in other criminal prosecutions.
Kansas District Judge Warren Wilbert, no friend to abortion activists in previous litigation, startled onlookers when he veered from the customary script and refused to prohibit defense attorneys from arguing that Roeder was over-charged (that the charge should have been voluntary manslaughter instead of first-degree murder), based on Roeder's perception of the necessity of killing Tiller to prevent the killing of innocent third parties (unborn children).
If defendants accused of violence against abortionists are permitted to defend themselves as vigorously as other criminal defendants, it could affect climate change in the abortion industry. Convicted assailants might not necessarily be signing on for lethal injection or life in prison, and there might be an occasional not guilty verdict.
One of the attractive features of an abortion practice is the ability to have a life away from the clinic. Nobody will call the abortionist out of his daughter's birthday party for an emergency, and his pager will not go off during his parents' 50th wedding anniversary banquet. He can be active in his Lutheran Church, as Tiller was, or in his Jewish Congregation, as New York abortionist Bart Slepian was. He can schedule a golf day, or an annual fishing trip, with autonomy. A perception of increased physical danger, however, may offset the allure of these perks of the abortionist lifestyle.
Abortion industry shareholders are therefore concerned that even-handed criminal procedure may indirectly drop the water table for providers, such that only the most deeply-rooted, ideologically-committed abortionists would stay in the business. Most agree that pro-abortion true believers make up a small fraction of the total abortion provider cadre. For broad availability, the industry will need the services of a large pool of uncommitted, opportunistic providers, at least until and unless Speaker Pelosi and President Obama are able to deliver more coercive measures to forcibly recruit collaborators to the business.
Judge's Background Under Scrutiny in Trial of Man Accused of Murdering U.S. Abortion Doctor
Canadian Press Newswire
WICHITA, Kan. - The judge overseeing the trial of the man accused of gunning down a Kansas abortion doctor is a practicing Roman Catholic who once courted the endorsement of an anti-abortion group - but who has insisted the case won't be about abortion. State District Judge Warren Wilbert galvanized both sides in the U.S. abortion debate this week when he refused on the eve of Scott Roeder's murder trial to block the defence from trying to build a voluntary-manslaughter case by arguing that Roeder believed the killing of Dr. George Tiller was necessary to save unborn children. Legal experts said the judge's decision was a proper attempt to protect the defendant's rights. But the move has put Wilbert and his background under the microscope heading into one of the most sensational abortion-related cases in the U.S.
"All high-profile trials put a lot of pressure on judges because even though our courtrooms are open, generally speaking, the public doesn't have an eye on judges unless election time comes around," said Michael Kaye, director of Washburn University's Center for Excellence in Advocacy in Topeka. "So a judge in this position, any judge knowing this, is going to try to do his best to appear judicious and to rule in a way that will not get him reversed."
Wilbert, 57, is considered by many in the local legal community to be a fair judge. No one can seem to point to an instance in which he injected his religious beliefs into a case.
He is a rather low-key figure on the bench. He runs a tight courtroom, isn't given to colorful exchanges and has little tolerance for distraction. The Roeder trial _ which began with jury selection Wednesday _ is easily the biggest case to come before him.
Tiller, one of the few late-term abortion providers in the U.S., was shot to death inside his Lutheran church in Wichita last May.
In televised hearings, Wilbert has been scrupulous about keeping private his own beliefs on abortion, exhaustively citing case law when making any rulings. He angered news outlets when he closed jury selection to the media, saying the presence of reporters could inhibit prospective jurors from speaking frankly about abortion.
He has insisted the trial will not turn into a debate over abortion, warning Roeder's lawyers that he intends to keep the case as a "criminal, first-degree murder trial."
Wilbert, a Republican who earned his bachelor's and law degrees from Washburn University in Topeka, was appointed to the bench in 1995 and faced no opposition the first three times he stood election. The most recent race was a different story: Wilbert won re-election in 2008 by a mere 471 votes out of nearly 166,000 cast.
Kansans for Life's political action committee endorsed Wilbert in that race, though it did not contribute to his campaign directly. The mainstream anti-abortion group does not espouse violence, and its political arm focuses on lobbying the state Legislature.
Finance records show that Wilbert paid the group $75 in September 2008 to have his name listed in an ad in its quarterly newsletter, a 24-page booklet that included articles such as "Update on Tiller charges" and "Planned Parenthood - a Snake in the Grass!" Planned Parenthood is a leading abortion provider. The judge also spent more than $16,000 on radio spots on seven stations.
The ad in the newsletter took up most of the bottom of page 16. It said: "The Kansans for Life PAC urges you to vote for, work for and pray for the following pro-life candidates."
David Gittrich, the organization's state development director, said the group endorsed Wilbert because it believed he was no judicial activist and would not try to make new law from the bench. "The No. 1 thing is, is this a good judge?" Gittrich said.
In an election guide published by The Wichita Eagle, Wilbert described himself as a member of Wichita's St. Thomas Aquinas Church, where the married father of two was a lay minister and former president of the school board. Among Catholicism's core doctrines is a strict stand against abortion.
Beyond the ad, campaign-watchers said they could not recall anything he might have said about his position on abortion during his re-election bid.
In an email to The Associated Press, Wilbert turned down an interview request for this story, saying he could not comment because of the trial.
The judge has dealt with cases involving abortion before. Court records show a 2005 case in which he dismissed a public records lawsuit filed by Cheryl Sullenger, the senior policy adviser for anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, after she was denied copies of tapes of calls to the emergency dispatcher for ambulance runs from Tiller's clinic. Though the judge ruled against her, Sullenger said she believes Wilbert will "do his job" in the latest case. "Most everybody in the world is looking at him - he is not going to pull monkey business," Sullenger said. "I don't think he wants to be known as the judge who blew the biggest case he's ever had."
Though he advertised with Kansas for Life, campaign finance records show that Wilbert also received a $500 contribution in June 2008 from Dan Monnat, one of Tiller's lawyers. Two months before his slaying, Tiller was acquitted of misdemeanour charges he failed to get an independent second opinion for some late-term abortions as required under state law. Wilbert and Monnat had worked together before, when Wilbert faced his own legal problems. A judicial commission reprimanded him in 2006 for a personal relationship with a subordinate employee - conduct Wilbert later explained to the Wichita Bar Association consisted of riding motorcycles with courthouse employees after work. "I donated to his campaign because I thought he was a good judge and would continue to be a good judge," Monnat said.
Washburn University's Kaye dismissed as "hyperbole" warnings that allowing Roeder to build a manslaughter case will lead to open season on abortion doctors. Kaye said he doubts Roeder's lawyers will actually be able to pull together such a defence. "Lawyers when they try a case are concerned first and foremost with defending somebody - no matter how unattractive and controversial - within the bounds of the law," Kaye said, "and they expect the judge to recognize that, and he has."
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