Coverups don't just happen in North Carolina

Columbus, OH (LifeNews.com) -- The Ohio Supreme Court is holding a hearing today on a case involving a secret abortion on a 14-year-old girl who was a victim of rape. A Cincinnati couple is upset their daughter had an abortion at a local Planned Parenthood facility without their knowledge or consent as required by state law.

The girl's parents filed a lawsuit against Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio for violating the state's parental notification law by not telling them of her abortion, which may have been coerced.

The girl in the case provided an incorrect phone number to Planned Parenthood officials for notification. Instead of giving the abortion center her parents' phone, she gave the number for her 22-year-old boyfriend -- her soccer coach John Haller.

Haller started having sexual relations with the teenager when she was 13 and he was eventually convicted in 2004 of sexual battery and spent three years in prison. He signed off on the abortion instead of the teen's father.

The parents filed a lawsuit that began the series of court actions and alleged Planned Parenthood violated state law, failed to get proper informed consent, and failed to report a suspected case of child abuse to authorities.

In their suit against Planned Parenthood, the teen's parents want it to turn over to their attorney the abortion records of all women under the age of 18 to determine if there have been other cases and to show how the abortion business handles them.

In August, the 1st District Court of Appeals determined that Planned Parenthood doesn't have to give the couple's attorney record of abortions done on other teenagers.

In January, the Ohio Supreme Court decided on a 4-3 vote not to hear the appeal. Later, it reversed itself and agreed to review the case.

Brian Hurley, the attorney representing the girl's family, told the Cincinnati Enquirer at the time that he was "really ecstatic the Ohio Supreme Court will look at what we think are extremely important issues related to the issue of child abuse."

In the appeals court ruling, the judges ruled unanimously that the records can remain confidential because the attorney did not file a class action lawsuit on behalf of a group of parents saying Planned Parenthood is doing secret abortions.

It said the case is a civil one and not a criminal lawsuit and claimed there is no other evidence pointing to Planned Parenthood routinely doing abortions without following state law and telling the parents of a teen girl.

The court also mentioned privacy issues and Judge Mark Painter wrote, “Even with the records (blacked out), it is arguable that disclosure would result in a privacy invasion."

However, Hurley is only seeking statistical information, not the names or contact information of anyone having an abortion at the Planned Parenthood center.

Hurley previously spoke about the case and Planned Parenthood's handling of the teen's abortion, saying "Apparently they made no effort to confirm to whom they were speaking when they placed their call to notify the parents. They did the minimum they could under the existing law."

Hurley is also representing a teenager in a second case against Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio Region.

In that case, the teen accuses the abortion business of covering up her sexual victimization by her father.

Under Ohio law, doctors, nurses, teachers and other professionals are required to report alleged sexual abuse to authorities and the teen says that didn't happen in her abortion case.

The unnamed girl filed the lawsuit in Warren County Common Pleas Court in May 2007 saying she told Planned Parenthood staff about the incest.

Abortion business officials told the Associated Press at the time the facility would have contacted authorities after learning of any possible sexual abuse.

"We would call and report as required by law," Becki Brenner, Planned Parenthood's Southwest Region president and chief executive officer, said.

Under the lawsuit, the teenager says Planned Parenthood's failure to report the incest to police resulted in another 18 months of sexual abuse at the hands of her father.

The girl eventually told someone else about the problems, leading to her father John Blanks Jr.'s prosecution and a five year prison sentence.

The lawsuit claims Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio uses a "don't ask, don't tell" policy when it comes to sexual abuse.

Hurley said he's obtained a handwritten note from Planned Parenthood that mentions the phrase, "Don't ask/don't tell" and said the note was from a Planned Parenthood trainer, Julia Piercey.

"So, to me, their position is laughable," Hurley told the Cincinnati Enquirer. "It came from their own files, from their own trainer."

FWIW, there was a story last year about a prolife group in California that sent a supposedly minor girl into a PP clinic for an abortion. Part of her story included being impregnated by a much older man. As in this post and previous ones, no action was taken to report this to the authorities. So the "see no evil, hear no evil" mindset isn't limited to just a few states. This seems an integral part of the PP organization.

One thing that troubles me are the light sentences handed out to the soccer coach and abusive father in this story. Have we as a society become so indifferent to the abuse of children that a relative slap on the wrist is all thats given when a young girl is sexually abused by her supposed caregivers? I guess the question answers itself and THAT is really depressing!