ACLJ: Trials Put Spotlight on Horror of Partial-Birth Abortion.News Editors NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 1, 2004 The American Center for Law and Justice, which specializes in constitutional law and pro-life litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. , said today the first week of testimony in the federal court trials involving the challenge of the national ban on partial-birth abortion partial-birth abortion n. A late-term abortion, especially one in which a viable fetus is partially delivered through the cervix before being extracted. Not in technical use. is putting a spotlight on the horrific procedure that takes the life of an unborn child moments before birth. "The testimony is graphic, disturbing and points to an undeniable fact - that the life of an unborn child is taken in a manner that is violent, painful, and barbaric," said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ ACLJ American Center for Law and Justice ACLJ Appleseed Center for Law and Justice (Washington, DC) , who is supporting the Department of Justice in its defense of the ban and attending the trial in New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. . "While in the early stages of the proceedings, it is encouraging to see the court take an active and inquisitive role - putting pointed questions to abortion doctors - questions that deal with the way the unborn child is killed and questions about the pain suffered by the unborn child. We are also confident that when the Justice Department presents its case it will prove that this procedure is not medically necessary medically necessary Managed care adjective Referring to a covered service or treatment that is absolutely necessary to protect and enhance the health status of a Pt, and could adversely affect the Pt's condition if omitted, in accordance with accepted and must be eliminated from our society." The ACLJ will be filing amicus briefs representing members of Congress who sponsored the partial-birth abortion ban legislation that was approved by Congress last fall with wide bi-partisan support. After President Bush signed the measure into law, several organizations filed suit challenging the ban. This week, three trials began simultaneously in California, Nebraska, and New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of concerning the constitutionality of the ban. In New York, where the American Civil Liberties Union American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), nonpartisan organization devoted to the preservation and extension of the basic rights set forth in the U.S. Constitution. , the National Abortion Federation The National Abortion Federation (NAF) is an organization of abortion providers. Though originally a U.S. group, NAF has expanded to include practitioners in Canada and Australia as well as many European countries. and individual physicians are challenging the ban, abortion doctors have been questioned about the procedure. One physician testified that the unborn child sometimes does not immediately die after limbs are pulled off. When asked if a dismembered fetus can still be living, the doctor responded: "Absolutely . . . . just removing an arm or a leg does not necessarily kill the fetus." U.S. District Court Judge Richard Casey asked another witness - Dr. Timothy Johnson, a plaintiff in the case - if he ever thought about fetal pain when the procedure was performed. Johnson said he did not. "Never crossed your mind?" Judge Casey inquired again. "No," Johnson answered. The trial in New York City could last one month or longer. The American Center for Law and Justice specializes in constitutional law and is based in Washington, D.C. Its website address is www.aclj.org. |
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