Below is the video from our News Conference in which we announced a medical malpractice suit against West Virginia’s largest abortion clinic and its abortionist Rodney Lee Stephens. The suit was filed on behalf of Itai Gravely and in partnership with Alliance Defending Freedom. Jeremy Dys, president and general counsel of the FPCWV shared comments and announced the lawsuit on Monday, June 10, 2013.

If the video doesn’t appear automatically, please refresh your browser or click here to watch it on YouTube.

Below is a collection of articles from around the country covering the details of this case.

The Daily Mail: “The general public, as a matter of public safety, needs to know that Women’s Health Center of West Virginia and the abortion industry of West Virginia is unregulated…That means the state of West Virginia is not inspecting this clinic, licensing its activities, or in any way ensuring the safety of the women who enter its doors.” Click here for original article.

The West Virginia Gazette: “Gravely, 26, alleges that she changed her mind about the abortion, but was physically restrained and forced to have the procedure at Women’s Health Center, according to the lawsuit filed last Friday in Kanawha Circuit Court. Gravely was later taken to a hospital where doctors discovered the fetus’ head had been left in her uterus, the suit alleges.” Click here for original article.

The Associated Press: “When a patient tells the doctor ‘stop’ and the doctor continues, that’s egregious,” Dys said. “She has revoked her informed consent. They did not regain her informed consent, and they proceeded with the procedure anyway with her physically restrained on the table. That’s unacceptable.” Click here for original article.

LifeSiteNews.com: “West Virginia abortionist Rodney Lee Stephens forced a 26-year-old woman to go through with an abortion she did not want and failed to anesthetize her, putting her through excruciating pain, according to a lawsuit filed in Kanawha County Circuit Court. After the abortion the woman’s pain only escalated until doctors discovered the abortionist had left part of the baby’s body, including the skull, inside her womb.” Click here for original article.

TimesWV.com: “Tia’s greatest concern is for other women who, like she was, are completely unaware of what goes on inside of Women’s Health Center of West Virginia,” Dys said. “Her motivation is that other women aren’t harmed.” Click here for original article.

LifeNews.com: “Abortionists should be held to the same health and safety standards as all other medical facilities,” said Mattox. “It is not too much to expect that abortionists meet basic standards to protect women’s health.” Click here for original article.

WOWKTV.com: “In a deposition, Dr. Byron Calhoun reviewed Gravely’s condition after the two procedures she underwent in April 2012. He concluded that Stephens gave Gravely “insufficient anesthetic” and caused Gravely “severe pain, emotional trauma, repeated surgery, and increased future health risks.” Calhoun is a professor and vice chair of the Department of Obstretics and Gynecology at West Virginia University-Charleston.” Click here for original article.

OpposingViews.com: “After the procedure, the lawsuit alleges that Stephens never checked up on Gravely, but rather had her escorted out of the building through a back door by her father and cousin. The next day, Gravely’s pain still had not subsided. She called the clinic, but because she was unable to drive herself there, an ambulance took her to a Charleston hospital.” Click here for original article.

OneNewsNow.com: “ADF attorney Casey Mattox tells OneNewsNow that Itai Gravely complained repeatedly of unbearable pain because of inadequate anesthesia, and she asked that the abortion be stopped. But Stephens responded by calling in other staff. According to Mattox, Stephens “went ahead and continued on with the abortion, holding her down to complete it despite the fact that she was in extreme pain.” Click here for original article.

WorldMag.com: “Gravely’s suit is part of a wave of legal challenges filed against abortionists in the wake of Kermit Gosnell’s successful prosecution in Philadelphia for negligence and murder. Pro-life advocates have said for years that abortionists are not following current regulations and are putting women’s lives at risk. While lawyers seek justice in the courts, state lawmakers have worked to pass stricter limits on abortions and better health and safety regulations for abortion facilities.” Click here for original article.

West Virginia Record: “The defendants made no proper attempt to reassemble the now crushed fetal remains or to use ultrasound technology to view Gravely’s post-surgical uterus so as to determine that all parts of the unborn child had been removed or to provide the removed parts of Gravely’s unborn baby and uterine contents to a qualified pathologist for evaluation and/or analysis or to otherwise use medically-necessary and medically-appropriate methods and means to verify that all parts of the unborn child had been entirely removed, according to the suit.” Click here for original article.

Illinois Family Institute: “Abortionists must be held accountable for such horrors,” said Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Michael J. Norton, co-counsel and a former U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado. Norton co-authored an Alliance Defending Freedom report to the U.S. House of Representatives on the potentially fraudulent use of taxpayer dollars by Planned Parenthood. “Our tax dollars should not fund abortionists who are irresponsible and only promote their own self-interest and bottom line.” Click here for original article.

The Register Herald: “This is more about safety and health care and professional performance and responsibility. I think anybody, no matter what side of this argument you’re on — pro-life or pro-choice — is going to agree with that. If it’s (abortion) going to happen, it needs to be done in a right way. Patients need to be treated with good care and with responsibility. There probably needs to be some oversight.” Click here for original article.

Citizenlink: “According to court documents, she was given both an oral sedative and intravenous sedation before abortionist Rodney Lee Stephens began. During the abortion, Gravely complained of severe pain, court documents state. She immediately and repeatedly told Stephens and those who were assisting him to stop. They did not, according to the legal complaint, and physically restrained Gravely.” Click here for original article.

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About Nathan Cherry

Nathan Cherry is the chief editor and blogger for the Engage Family Minute blog, the official blog of the FPCWV. He serves also as the Regional Development Coordinator as a liaison to the pastor's of West Virginia. He is a pro-life, pro-traditional marriage, pro-religious freedom conservative. He is also a husband, father, pastor, author, musician, and follower of Jesus Christ.

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