Buy:grundle
02-03-06, 02:40 PM
I am against the government prosecuting this person for doing this.
http://www.masslive.com/hampfrank/republican/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1138870027104950.xml&coll=1
Plea in abortion case nets probation, fine for woman
Thursday, February 02, 2006
By BETSY CALVERT
GREENFIELD - Judge John Agostini yesterday sentenced a 50-year-old Wendell woman, Deva Skydancer, to two months of probation and a $500 fine after she pleaded guilty in connection with an abortion performed in 2004.
Skydancer, of 41 Farley Road, changed her plea to guilty to one count of practicing medicine without a license. The state dropped a charge of illegal procurement of an abortion.
Skydancer admitted in court, however, to performing a suction abortion, which she called menstrual extraction, on a 25-year-old Greenfield woman who was 10½ weeks pregnant at the time.
The woman later had to be hospitalized for a uterine infection caused by the procedure. The hospital reported the case to law enforcement.
Suction abortion involves inserting a surgical hose into the uterus and using a syringe for extraction of the fetus, Deputy First District Attorney Elizabeth Dunphy Farris said in Franklin Superior Court.
Farris said she could not comment on whether the patient had suffered any long-term injuries as a result of the procedure. She did say that the woman agreed to the procedure and was aware of the prosecution's sentencing recommendation.
The fact that Skydancer has no prior record, and that the woman had agreed to the procedure, is part of the decision for a relatively light sentencing recommendation from the district attorney's office, Farris said.
Defense lawyer David Hoose noted in arguing for the lighter sentence that infections such as the woman suffered also occur in doctor-performed abortions in more clinical settings.
The state's sentencing range for the charge of practicing medicine without a license is a $100 to $100,000 fine with a sentence of one month to one year. The sentence for performing an illegal abortion is up to seven years with a $2,000 fine.
In her probation, Skydancer is also ordered to pay $200 in restitution to the patient and not to perform menstrual extractions nor to train others or solicit others to do so. Farris said Skydancer has no medical licensing of which the state is aware. Hoose did not mention any in court, and would not comment further afterward.
Abortion rights advocates said they were shocked by the case when it was initially reported, because access to legal abortion is so much easier in Massachusetts than in other parts of the country.
http://www.masslive.com/hampfrank/republican/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1138870027104950.xml&coll=1
Plea in abortion case nets probation, fine for woman
Thursday, February 02, 2006
By BETSY CALVERT
GREENFIELD - Judge John Agostini yesterday sentenced a 50-year-old Wendell woman, Deva Skydancer, to two months of probation and a $500 fine after she pleaded guilty in connection with an abortion performed in 2004.
Skydancer, of 41 Farley Road, changed her plea to guilty to one count of practicing medicine without a license. The state dropped a charge of illegal procurement of an abortion.
Skydancer admitted in court, however, to performing a suction abortion, which she called menstrual extraction, on a 25-year-old Greenfield woman who was 10½ weeks pregnant at the time.
The woman later had to be hospitalized for a uterine infection caused by the procedure. The hospital reported the case to law enforcement.
Suction abortion involves inserting a surgical hose into the uterus and using a syringe for extraction of the fetus, Deputy First District Attorney Elizabeth Dunphy Farris said in Franklin Superior Court.
Farris said she could not comment on whether the patient had suffered any long-term injuries as a result of the procedure. She did say that the woman agreed to the procedure and was aware of the prosecution's sentencing recommendation.
The fact that Skydancer has no prior record, and that the woman had agreed to the procedure, is part of the decision for a relatively light sentencing recommendation from the district attorney's office, Farris said.
Defense lawyer David Hoose noted in arguing for the lighter sentence that infections such as the woman suffered also occur in doctor-performed abortions in more clinical settings.
The state's sentencing range for the charge of practicing medicine without a license is a $100 to $100,000 fine with a sentence of one month to one year. The sentence for performing an illegal abortion is up to seven years with a $2,000 fine.
In her probation, Skydancer is also ordered to pay $200 in restitution to the patient and not to perform menstrual extractions nor to train others or solicit others to do so. Farris said Skydancer has no medical licensing of which the state is aware. Hoose did not mention any in court, and would not comment further afterward.
Abortion rights advocates said they were shocked by the case when it was initially reported, because access to legal abortion is so much easier in Massachusetts than in other parts of the country.