Approximately 70 pro-life people gathered in the cold rain over the weekend to protest plans to open a new abortion business in this central Kansas city following the death of late-term abortion practitioner George Tiller.
Holding signs that read, “Stop Abortion Now!” the pro-life advocates lined Harry Street outside the office of physician Mila Means, who has been training at a Kansas City, Kansas, abortion business over the past several months so that she can begin her own abortion practice in Wichita.
Another future abortion practitioner,Gregory Linhardt, has also been training with Means at the Aid for Women abortion facility in Kansas City so he can open up his own abortion center in Wichita. The community has been abortion free for eighteen months since Tiller’s family chose to close his abortion center following his shooting death.
The protest and prayer vigil was conducted in a peaceful and prayerful manner and a small group of pro-abortion counter-protestors huddled on a corner and unsuccessfully attempted to cover a huge sign that read “Thou Shalt Not Kill” put up by Mark Gietzen of the Kansas Coalition for Life.
“We have reason to believe that legal steps will be taken to prevent Means from opening up an abortion business in Wichita. Anyone who tries to open an abortion business here will certainly face strong public protest from this community,” said Operation Rescue president Troy Newman.
Information about Linhardt and Means making plans to open up abortion businesses in Wichita surfaced last week and drew immediate opposition from OR and Kansans for Life.
Means has reportedly purchased abortion equipment from the now-closed Women’s Health Care Services formerly operated by Tiller and plans to begin doing abortions on Saturdays at her medical office near East Harry and Webb Road in Wichita. Means is a family practice physician who is not certified as an obstetrician or gynecologist.
Newman says Means has a troubled past that includes disciplinary action taken against her medical license for the misuse of psychiatry in her family practice, having improper personal relationships with patients, and for something more serious that the Kansas Board of Healing Arts has redacted from her public record.
The medical board indicates in Means’ disciplinary documents that it had the authority to discipline her under a Kansas law for unprofessional conduct including the “commission of any act of sexual abuse, misconduct, or exploitation related to the licensee’s professional practice.” Newman says redactions prevented the disclosure of details of the alleged sexual abuse, misconduct, or exploitation, and omitted some of the disciplinary action taken against her.
“Information like this is often withheld because it would destroy the person’s reputation if it were made public. Whatever Means did to merit such discipline should be cause for concern to anyone who may seek services from her,” said Newman.
The Associated Press indicates Means will not do the late-term abortions Tiller did and will begin doing abortions in mid-2011.
