Apparently some Texas officials do not like the fact that Planned Parenthood performs abortions. They are hardly alone in that, but their conviction that abortion is wrong does not trump the fact that it is legal. And it does not mean that they can get around that fact with false accusations and bogus evidence.
A grand jury in Houston looked into charges that Planned Parenthood illegally profited from the sale of fetal tissue resulting from abortions. The accusation was based on videos released in July that purportedly showed Planned Parenthood officials discussing such sales. The videos were surreptitiously taken at a Houston clinic by two anti-abortion activists posing as would-be buyers of fetal tissue. The videos have since been shown to have been edited to remove the Planned Parenthood official’s repeated assertion that the organization would not profit from the transaction. (Charging a fee to cover costs of handling donated tissue is legal. Profiting is not.)
On Monday, Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson announced that the grand jury cleared Planned Parenthood of any wrongdoing. Moreover, after reviewing the evidence and listening to testimony it indicted the two activists who produced the video.
David Daleiden, 26, a leader of the anti-abortion group called the Center for Medical Progress, was indicted on a felony charge of tampering with a government record and a misdemeanor charge concerning purchasing human organs. Sandra Merritt, another center employee, was indicted on the same felony charge.
This is just the latest in a series of investigations into Planned Parenthood related to those videos or the organization’s handling of fetal tissue. Twelve states have completed investigations, most focused on the purported sale of fetal tissue, and none have found evidence of illegal acts. Two states have still-ongoing investigations.
Texas is not about to be discouraged by the facts – or its own grand jury. In a statement that was both untrue and a complete non sequitur, the state’s attorney general said, “The fact remains that the videos exposed the horrific nature of abortion. ... The state’s investigation of Planned Parenthood is ongoing.”
And, in remarks that were wholly predictable and equally unrelated to the issue before the grand jury, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Monday, “Nothing about today’s announcement in Harris County impacts the state’s ongoing investigation. The state of Texas will continue to protect life, and I will continue to support legislation prohibiting the sale or transfer of fetal tissue.”
Everything about this case demonstrates and reinforces the fact that profiting from trafficking in fetal tissue is not the real issue. And neither is Planned Parenthood’s role in any of that. The activists targeted Planned Parenthood because it provides abortion services.
That is their right, at least up to the point where they broke the law. Those who oppose abortion have the right to speak their minds, to try to persuade others and to work to elect candidates who will support pro-life Supreme Court candidates.
But for anti-abortion officials to use the legal system purely to advance their agenda is wrong. No one has found any evidence Planned Parenthood acted illegally and to continue to investigate it over and over again is an abuse of authority. The law should not be used to bludgeon those whose only crime is to disagree.
