Today a jury in Wichita, Kansas took only 37 minutes to find Scott Roeder guilty of first degree murder for shooting abortionist George Tiller back on May 31. Along with every other major pro-life organization, the Pro-Life Action League swiftly condemned Tiller’s murder. There is no place for violence in our peaceful movement to restore respect for the lives of unborn babies.
Shortly after the verdict was announced, I received a call from CBS radio asking for comments, and I’d like to share those reflections here.
I told the CBS reporter that I was gratified to see justice done in this case—Scott Roeder deserves to be punished for his heinous act of violence. I noted that the CBS reporter seemed to take it for granted that we pro-lifers are opposed to violence. Throughout this whole episode, the mainstream media have resisted the temptation to link legitimate pro-life activists with the likes of Roeder. That’s a significant positive development.
I went on to explain that we’re working towards the day when the lives of unborn babies are valued by our justice system just the same as the life of abortionist George Tiller was. Despite the heinous way he earned a living, George Tiller’s life deserved to be respected, and our laws recognize that. The lives of innocent unborn babies deserve the same respect within our system of laws.
We can expect our opponents in the pro-abortion choice camp to cynically use today’s verdict in an attempt to demonize the pro-life movement—anything to draw attention away from the violence of abortion. But our fellow Americans are beginning to realize that our movement is peaceful, and our dedication to unborn babies and their mothers and fathers is sincere.
More and more they’re agreeing with us on abortion. And that trend will continue long after the man on the street has forgotten the names of George Tiller and Scott Roeder.
