James Pendergraft, a Florida-based abortion business owner has had his medical licenses suspended four times for violations, has reportedly opened up a new late-term abortion business in the Washington, D.C. area.
Pendergraft, who runs the Orlando Women’s Center abortion business, has had his medical license repeatedly revoked for botched abortions, illegal late-term abortions, and dispensing drugs without a license. Now, the pro-life group Operation Rescue, says he has set up shop in a secret late-term abortion business somewhere in or near the nation’s capital where late-term abortions are being only partially completed.
He also opened a new web site, LateTermAbortion.net, that describes in detail how his new office is soliciting women nationwide and from other countries for “intracardiac injection of medication into the fetal heart,” which kills the unborn child. Pendergraft describes how his new abortion center uses long spinal needs to pierce the pregnant abdomen and inject the hearts of late-term unborn babies in the womb with poison or air.
Pendergraft makes it clear on the web site that he does not complete the abortion process at his new location but discharges patients 15 minutes after the injection and leaves them to go to their own personal physician or find a medical center nearby or in their home state to remove the body of the deceased unborn child. Without treatment women in this condition can die.
Operation Rescue president Try Newman informed LifeNews.com of the new Pendergraft center, which he says is purposefully designed to evade Florida law and compel the participation of legitimate physicians and medical staff in the abortion process. He notes how the web site describes how Pendergraft will discuss the injection over the phone with women and how they will be met privately and escorted to the secret location for the baby’s fatal injection.
“While Pendergraft attempts to convince the reader this is about security, it is more likely about evading law enforcement, because this dangerous process is highly unethical and likely illegal since he holds no active medical license whatsoever,” Newman said.
Although the location is not revealed, Newman says the Pendergraft abortion office must be located either in Washington or neighboring Maryland or Virginia and Pendergraft holds no active medical licenses in any of those jurisdictions.
“Pendergraft is a proven danger to the public,” said Newman. “This is another example of authorities willing to look the other way and abortionists who are willing to endanger women and violate laws because they believe they are somehow above them. We pray our complaints will help stop this abuse and bring Pendergraft to justice.”
The Florida medical board suspended his license after it found Pendergraft had allowed an unlicensed employee to order and administer drugs even though she was unqualified and had a known history of drug abuse. Pendergraft also was disciplined for prescribing steroids to her for unknown reasons and he was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and take a course on record keeping.
Pendergraft faced previous suspensions, one as recently as January, 2010, for botched legal abortions and illegal late-term abortions, and dispensing drugs without a license.
The first suspension was the result of a complaint filed April 14, 2008, that states Pendergraft illegally prescribed controlled substances without proper DEA licensing. The board also said Pendergraft committed medical malpractice in a botched abortion of a 19-week-old unborn child in February 2006.
The botched abortion saw Pendergraft inadequately dilating a patient’s cervix for a D&E abortion. He then ruptured her uterus and shoved the unborn child’s body into the abdominal cavity.
The mother was rushed to the hospital where she received an emergency hysterectomy along with the removal of the dead unborn child, who was missing an arm after the abortion attempt. OR indicates the arm was later found at Pendergraft’s EPOC abortion clinic. The pro-life group maintains that Pendergraft’s not reporting that he had removed the arm caused a delay in her care at the hospital as surgeons futilely attempted to locate the missing appendage.
Pendergraft owns five abortion clinics in Florida. While on suspension, his abortion centers continue to operate with other abortion practitioners, at least one of which has had his own problems with the law.
