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Bailey to emphasize reporting rule to Planned Parenthood officials
By Kym Soper, Journal Inquirer
06/04/2002
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Chief State's Attorney John M. Bailey said he has scheduled a meeting with Planned Parenthood next week to remind the pro-abortion group of its obligation under state law to report suspected cases of child sex abuse.

Aides to Bailey, who has held similar meetings with Connecticut clergy, said the June 12 meeting is the result of the disclosure that Planned Parenthood had advised callers pretending to be an impregnated 13-year-old girl not to mention the age of her 22-year-old boyfriend when seeking an abortion.

The calls were made in February by Life Dynamics Inc., a Texas-based anti-abortion group, and reported by WTIC-TV61 last month.

Mark Crutcher, who heads Life Dynamics, claimed that in 91 percent of the calls, Planned Parenthood employees agreed to keep the girl's sexual relationship secret - which Bailey says is a violation of state law.

Abortion clinic employees are required by law to report suspected child abuse to state authorities. A 22-year-old man having sex with a 13-year-old girl would be guilty of statutory rape.

Planned Parenthood officials have questioned the reliability of the tape-recorded phone conversations made by Life Dynamics, saying it was "an organization with a notorious anti-Planned Parenthood agenda."

But state officials say the employees heard talking on the tape have been verified as real people who counsel young girls calling Planned Parenthood.

On the tapes, a Windham Planned Parenthood employee is heard telling the caller not to bring up the boyfriend when going for an abortion.

"They won't ask anything about him?" the caller asks.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that, OK?" the employee says. "Don't even bring that up, OK?"

A Bridgeport Planned Parenthood worker tells the caller that the relationship is illegal. But when asked what the consequences are, the worker responds, "Nothing, if you don't want to press charges. It's just, it's not legal."

And at a West Hartford branch a Planned Parenthood employee told the caller that she had given too much information.

"The fact that your boyfriend is 22 and the fact you're 14 ... we're mandated reporters. That means we have to report that," the employee said.

But no reports ever were made, state officials said.

Officials with the chief state's attorney's office have said Planned Parenthood appeared to be "skirting the law," saying that a pregnant 13-year-old is evidence enough of abuse.

Doctors, nurses, teachers, social workers, and those who come in contact with children are mandated reporters under state law. That means they must call the state Department of Children and Families hotline or local law enforcement officials when they suspect abuse or neglect has occurred.

Judith Rossi, executive assistant to Bailey, said however, there may be some contradictory law surrounding the issue.

State law also allows minors to seek reproductive help and have their identities remain confidential, Rossi said, which "raises a question of conflict with these mandated reporters."

When a person reports suspected abuse to the DCF hotline, they're asked for the child's name and address, age and gender, the nature and extent of the abuse, how the reporter came to know about it, and who they believe caused the abuse.

The state Department of Public Health believes that doctors may have a similar conflict, Rossi said, as federal law grants privacy between a doctor and a patient.

Rossi said the issue is being looked into by the state Office of Legislative Research, which is compiling all laws concerning mandated reporters and comparing them to those governing state agencies like the departments of Children and Families and of Public Health.


©Journal Inquirer 2009

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Reader Comments
Added: Friday June 07, 2002 at 07:55 AM EST
Well well well, Why am I not surprised? First we have the case of the Catholic Bishops and Cardinals covering for molesting priests which is a horrific crime. The press and the state attorney offices was very quick to pounce on them and demand justice. Which is of course the correct action. Anyone caught commiting a child sex abuse crime or covering it up should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Now let us turn to the most respected Women's Reproductive Health Advocate; Planned Parent Hood.

They were caught red handed covering up sexual crimes and in some cases working covertly with the teen to continue the crime against her. What do we get? We get the States Chief Attorney's office saying and I quote: Officials with the chief state's attorney's office have said Planned Parenthood appeared to be "skirting the law," saying that a pregnant 13-year-old is evidence enough of abuse.

Skirting the Law? Was the Cardinals or Bishops that covered Priest Molesting Boys skirting the law? No they were breaking the law! Planned Parent Hood is not merely Skirting the Law! They are breaking the Law! And why is the Chief State's Attorney John M. Bailey simply reminding Planned Parenthood that they are mandated reporters? Do your Job Mr. Bailey! Inestigate and Convict them as the Child Predators that they are!

Equal Punishment of the Equal Crime! Meaning if it is good enough to bash the heck out of the Catholic Church for it than it is certainly good enough to Bash the Heck out of Planned Parenthood for it too. PLANNED PARENTHOOD IS NOT ABOVE THE LAW!
Tim Ratigan

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