Research Paper Outline For Partial Birth Abortion

- The overwhelming majority of abortion clinic—88%—experienced at least one form of harassment in 2008. 87% reported picketing, 42% were picketing with patient blocking, and 21% cited incidents of vandalism. And more shockingly, nearly one-fifth of all of the largest abortion facilities reported a bomb threat. (Jones, 2011)

For around $400 and a referral from a well-respected doctor, Dr. George Loutrell Timanus performed abortions from the 1920s until 1951 (Reagan 1997, 158). Dr. Timanus, like many private practice physicians in his specialty performed abortions for women who came to him with varying reasons such as “poverty, excessive childbearing, and illegitimacy” (Reagan 1997, 158). Despite the general disapproval of abortions, Dr. Timanus practiced out in the open and was available for those who needed him. Dr. Timanus’ execution of these operations showed that though abortions were illegal at the time, there were many doctors who were sympathetic with different maternal cases. His decision to do what he thought was morally correct over the few decades is significant because it shows a change in attitude towards abortions in comparison with that of the early twentieth century. However, in 1951 Dr. Timanus’ office was raided and he, along with those who worked with and for him, was arrested for illegally performing abortions. In the beginning of the 1950s, people started to question whether or not abortions should be legal, thus why Dr. Timanus believed that he was doing nothing wrong and was well within his rights as a physician. Despite the fact that there were people and doctors who had similar beliefs as he did, not one of Dr. Timanus’ colleagues came to his defense as he was trialed for his crimes (Reagan

Kelly Fadden Business Law Professor Saunders 4/20/2015 Style of Case Roe v. Wade Citation 410 U.S. 114(1973) Factual Background Roe was an unmarried woman looking to get an abortion. The law in Texas, where she lived and the case was decided, was that a woman could get an abortion if, and only if, she was in a life threatening situation because of the pregnancy. Roe brought forth the case to speak on behalf of all women in the same position she herself was. There were also two other cases being brought before the court on the same matter with the plaintiffs being Hallford and the Does. Hallford was a doctor facing criminal charges for performing abortions on three women. The Does were a childless couple who were not expecting, though Mrs. Doe, if she were to become pregnant might face complications,

In 1992, a new abortion procedure was introduced to the United States public. It was first performed by Dr. James McMahon and explained by Dr. Martin Haskell (Scully). It was used during the second and third trimesters (around twenty to twenty-four weeks along) and involved partially delivering the fetus so the doctors could remove the baby’s brain with suction (Wagner). The term “D&X”, which stands for “intact dilation and extraction,” was used to refer to this procedure (Hoyt). It was not until a few years later that debates about this procedure came about. In 1995, “Representative Charles Canady (R., Fla) introduced the Partial Birth Abortion Act”

At the present time, abortion has become a hot topic that has sparked many heated debates in the recent presidential election, with both parties feeling strongly about the subject. Partial-birth abortion can be defined as the removal of a fetus that has already died and a late-term abortion is an abortion that occurs during a late stage of the pregnancy. I chose this topic in order to not only learn more and become better informed about this issue that has sparked such a widespread controversy, but also for the purpose of taking a closer look at the opposing sides to gain a better understanding of their views. Although I personally disagree with any kind of abortion, I would like to take a closer look at

Thesis Statement: Partial birth abortion is murder of innocent babies and an abomination to basic human rights and values.

October 1973 a controversial case arose from Boston concerning an abortion that caused Kenneth Edelin to be charged with manslaughter according to the Massachusetts law. The abortion was preformed at Boston City Hospital, which at the time was doing an array of experiments on aborted fetuses such as examining the effects fetuses have from substances given to the mother such as the drug being able to cross through into the placenta. Also, according to Mildred Jefferson an assistant professor at Boston University, some of the women who were proceeding with the abortions and allowed their fetuses to be used in the experiments may have been too young to legally consent. But nothing happened to those researchers so it was interesting to see that

Recently, congress has been going over the issue of partial birth abortions. A partial birth abortion is performed in the second and third trimesters. A partial birth abortion entails (1) inducing a breech delivery with forceps, (2) delivering the legs, arms, and torso only, (3) puncturing the back of the skull with scissors or a trochar, (4) inserting a suction curette into the skull, (5) suctioning the contents of the skull so as to collapse it, (6) completing the delivery. A partial breech delivery is not considered a birth at common law, where it is the passage of the head that is essential (Abortion Laws). Congress is currently in the process of passing the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act

Just over a million illegal abortions were performed a year in the 1950’s, resulting in over a thousand women dying.

Statement of Problem: Abortion is defined as the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy. Today, especially here in the United States of America, there is a growing issue and debate around the idea of abortion. There is a stigma against abortion because of the possibility of negative religious, political, medical, emotional, and mental consequences it may cause. Each year, worldwide there is an estimated 42 billion abortions that take place. This number does not include abortions that are not performed by professionals. The big issue alongside with abortion itself, is the affects it has on the mental health of females who undergo the procedure.

During a “God’s Miracle of Life in the Womb” workshop in March, Dr. Lile showed his audience the abortion facility which he helped buy out and close down. After buying the building, they discovered that the abortionist had left behind all his tools.

Main-Point #1: Primarily, I am going to discuss exactly what the problem is with abortion. After so much research on my topic, the

Partial-birth abortions in the third trimester, and the recent “day-after” or the RU-486 pill, now add a new attitude on the abortion issue. Partial-birth abortions and abortions in the third trimester are exceedingly controversial, because they involve the termination and/or expulsion of an actual fetus from the womb, whereas many early-prenatal abortions involve the expulsion of the embryo. In some countries, and for a while in America, partial-birth abortions meant that the baby was breached halfway through the womb, and then its neck was broken, which killed the baby instantly. Since then, the United States has banned it as a result of the many infuriated pro-life and even some pro-choice members who found it to be extremely inhumane. The RU-486 pill sends messages telling the brain that the woman that was inseminated, was already pregnant, and that the ovum that had been created, is removed because the body believes it is already impregnated. These operations raise many of the same problems as abortion itself.

Abortion is a highly-debated topic of whether it is ethical for a woman to decide to have one. Abortion is any of various surgical methods for deliberately terminating a pregnancy. When we speak of abortion today, we mean induced abortion performed by trained doctors, not including miscarriage (MacKinnon & Fiala, 2015). Some current methods of abortion are morning-after pill, mifepristone, uterine or vacuum aspiration, dilation and curettage, saline solution, prostaglandin drugs, hysterotomy, and partial birth abortion. Abortion involves questions about rights, happiness, and well-being, as well as the status and value of human life. The people who think it is ethical to have an abortion stand on the Pro-choice side and the people who think it is unethical stand on the Pro-life side. The liberal view of abortion supports abortions and the conservative view opposes abortion. There are many legal, religious, and medical conflicts that are included in the debate over abortion. The arguments made from both sides help us better understand whether a woman should have an abortion.

Many women that choose to have an abortion do not realize that it is a dangerous surgery with serious side effects. These side effects are both physical and psychological. Having an abortion is unnatural and interrupts this function of the human body. “The women’s body naturally resists the abortion, causing physical and emotional problems” (“Who does Abortion Affect?”). Almost all of the women who had abortions feel that they have made the wrong decision. The women are not informed about the side effects of abortion. Many women that had abortions said their doctors gave “little or no information about the potential health risks