Lankford Continues to Call for Justice for Five Late-Term Babies Found Dead at DC Abortion Clinic

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America’s podcast miniseries EXPOSED: Abortion in America to continue to call for justice for the five children found at the Washington Surgi-Clinic.

As the Senate’s most pro-life member, Lankford has been a leading voice in calling for an investigation after it was found that the remains of five children had been discarded in what appeared to be in a partial birth abortion. 

When the babies were first discovered, Lankford sent a letter to Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, Chief of the DC Metropolitan Police Department Robert Contee, and US Attorney General Merrick Garland after a truly gut-wrenching and gruesome report. He also joined a letter with his colleagues to Attorney General Merrick Garland, demanding the Department of Justice investigate. Following lack of response from the initial letter, Lankford sent a letter to Washington, DC Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Francisco J. Diaz, MD demanding answers over reports that the DOJ advised the remains of the five children be destroyed before their deaths could be investigated. As a result of this letter, the Medical Examiner has stopped destroying the bodies but has not yet agreed to investigate their deaths.

Excerpt

Lankford’s Initial Reaction to the Discovery of the Five: In many ways for me it was absolute shock as it was for anyone else who values the life of any child to think that we are still in a situation as a nation that there are places where it’s obvious these partial birth abortions are still occurring. We’ve got children fully developed they are being thrown away as medical waste. It is painful it is a message about our culture and it is a continual push to say the work is far from done. So many people have backed up and have said, ‘You know Roe v. Wade was overturned in the Dobbs decision, the work is done,’ and I’ve smiled at people and said ‘No we’re just getting started.’ We’re at the end of the first quarter on this there’s still a cultural conversation about the value of every child. That discovery was just another moment of awakening for hopefully millions of people to say this work is undone.

Why Discovery of the DC Five is Important Moment to Address Realities of Late-Term Abortions: I think it’s important because again it reminds people that there’s still a lot of work to be done, and we’ve got brutal deaths that are happening to children around the country—even right here in the nation’s capital. But, I think it’s important as well for anyone who just values the life of a child and for those folks that are kind of sitting on the fence saying, ‘Well I’m supportive of abortion early, but I don’t like it late.’ I think it reminds them that really where a lot of my Democrat colleagues are, is they want abortion at any moment at any time right up until the time of birth—regardless of how it’s actually done. And that is not where Americans are.

Addressing Next Steps for Justice for the Five: Next steps is continuing to be able to shine the light on the Medical Examiner on the Department of Justice, on the Mayor’s office and to demand the investigation there that should occur and then demand justice for those five. This was a crime which it seemed obvious on its face that it was based on how the bodies were actually destroyed. Then we need to make sure that we actually get justice for them in the days ahead.

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