Media Outlets Respond To Conviction In Tiller Murder Trial

Main Category: Abortion
Also Included In: Litigation / Medical Malpractice
Article Date: 04 Feb 2010 - 4:00 PDT

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Two newspapers and various broadcast outlets reacted to Friday's first-degree murder conviction of Scott Roeder for the May 2009 shooting death of abortion provider George Tiller. Summaries appear below.

Editorials

~ New York Times: Roeder's conviction "was a just verdict, but it was not only the judgment of guilt that mattered in this case," according to a Times editorial. It adds, "The trial sends an important message upholding the rule of law." Although Roeder's guilt "was never in doubt," the editorial argues that "[w]hat was in doubt was how the jury would react to the defense's attempts to portray the killer as somehow less culpable because of his fevered opposition to abortion and his outrage that abortion rights are constitutionally protected in this country." According to the editorial, "The fact that the jury convicted Mr. Roeder after deliberating just 37 minutes was a stunning rejection of that argument," and the "verdict's clear-eyed response to an ugly act of vigilantism should be welcomed on both sides of the political divide over abortion rights." The editorial says that Judge Warren Wilbert "deserves credit" for refusing to allow the jury to consider the lesser charge of manslaughter based on Roeder's opposition to abortion rights. "Political beliefs, no matter how sincerely held, do not lessen accountability for murder," the editorial concludes (New York Times, 2/2).

~ Augusta Chronicle: Roeder "took one life, and threw his own away, to make a point -- and witlessly ended up being the point himself," according to an Augusta Chronicle editorial. Roeder "shamelessly admitted that last May 31 he killed in cold blood in order to show that ... Tiller shouldn't kill," and "it took a Wichita jury only little more than half an hour to find Roeder guilty of it," the editorial says. "If Roeder thought he would become a hero of the pro-life movement, he truly was deranged" because he was "nothing more" than "a murderer," the editorial states. "And no member in good standing of the pro-life community would think otherwise," it adds. The editorial continues, "The truth is, those who perform violence in the name of pro-life are an anathema to us all." The editorial concludes, "George Tiller should never have been shot down in cold blood," but "he was the victim here, not abortion, and his death does nothing to ennoble the procedure" (Augusta Chronicle, 1/30).

Multimedia Coverage

~ CNN: A CNN multimedia feature focuses on the history of the abortion debate in Wichita, Kan., including perspectives of local residents. The feature also includes excerpts of Roeder's testimony and comments from Tiller's colleagues (Grinberg, CNN, 2/1).

~ MSNBC's "Countdown": Host Keith Olbermann comments on the verdict, including Roeder's conviction on two counts of aggravated assault for threatening two ushers after he shot Tiller (Olbermann, "Countdown," MSNBC, 2/1).

~ MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show": Host Maddow recaps the trial and highlights statements from Tiller's family and the Center for Reproductive Rights (Maddow, "The Rachel Maddow Show," MSNBC, 2/1).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.

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