WICHITA, Kan. — The man charged with murdering a high-profile abortion doctor claimed from his jail cell Sunday that similar violence was planned across the nation for as long as the procedure remained legal, a threat that comes days after a federal investigation launched into possible accomplices.
A Justice Department spokesman said the threat was being taken seriously and additional protection had been ordered for abortion clinics last week. But a leader of the anti-abortion movement derided the accused shooter as "a fruit and a lunatic.”
Scott Roeder called The Associated Press from the Sedgwick County jail, where he’s being held on charges of first-degree murder and aggravated assault in the shooting of Dr. George Tiller on May 31.
"I know there are many other similar events planned around the country as long as abortion remains legal,” Roeder said. He would not elaborate.
Tiller’s clinic in Wichita was among only a few in the U.S. that perform third-trimester abortions. He was shot while serving as an usher at the Lutheran church he attended.
Justice Department spokesman Matthew Miller said "we take this matter seriously, which is why the attorney general ordered increased protection of appropriate people and facilities last week.”
The Justice Department opened an investigation Friday to see if the gunman who killed Tiller had accomplices. Nancy Keenan president of NARAL-Pro-Choice America, said Roeder’s comments "continue to escalate that kind of activity, that kind of violence.”
by the associated press
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