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Planned Parenthood Lawsuit Federal Judge Delays Start Of Georgia Notification Law PAGE 10 — The Georgia Bulletin, July 16, 1987 BABY SHOWER — Gifts for mothers who chose life for their unborn babies rather than abortion were collected at the sixth annual Crisis Pregnancy shower sponsored by the Women’s Guild at St. Ann’s Church in Marietta. Ann Holdsworth and Ann Bolster, members of the parish Pro-Life Committee, brought the gifts to the Crisis Pregnancy Center at the Catholic Center. Handknitted sweaters and blankets were among the many items con tributed by the women. BY LIZ SCHEVTCHUK WASHINGTON (NC) — Abortion opponents have de nounced Secretary of Health and Human Services Otis R. Bowen’s firing of a department official for “insubordina tion" in her refusal to temporarily renew grants to Planned Parenthood. Jo Ann Gasper, the department’s deputy assistant secretary for population affairs, "was relieved ol her duties ... as a result of her refusal to carry out a direct and legally appropriate order from her supervisor," HHS announced in a formal statement. The statement added that Bowen "reiterated his commit ment to the right-to-life position and the Reagan ad ministration policy on family planning but was compelled to relieve Mrs. Gasper of her position in the face of her in subordination” over the-grant renewals. But pro-lifers said Mrs. Gasper’s dismissal was “outrageous” and resulted from her disagreements with Bowen over interpretion of the federal Title X family plan ning ban on grants to programs using abortion. “We think it’s outrageous that she was fired for trying to enforce the law,” said Douglas Johnson, legislative direc tor of the National Right to Life Committee. “The Reagan administration claims to be pro-life in both word and deed,” said Robert Marshall, research director of the American Life League. Yet, he added, when Mrs. Gasper tried to conform to the law and called the issue “to the attention of the administration, they fire her. This is the real ‘pro-life’ policy of the administration.” The 1970 Title X law, predating nationwide legal abortion, stipulates that under the federal program “none of the funds ... shall be used in programs where abortion is a method of family planning.” “Mrs. Gasper thinks the anti-abortion provision that’s in Title X really was intended to keep abortion out of the federal family planning program. And, of course, we agree with that,” said Johnson of the National Right to Life Com mittee. But Bowen, Johnson said, has “decided to continue to read the anti-abortion provision very narrowly and to per mit business as usual with Planned Parenthood.” At a news conference July 7, Mrs. Gasper asserted that “I have tried to live my life by principle, I have fought for principle, and I got fired for principle.” BY RITA McINERNEY Court action has delayed implementation of the Georgia parental notification law which requires females under 18 to notify their parents before getting an abortion. U.S. District Court Judge Robert Hall issued a temporary restraining order delaying the start of the law by at least 16 days at a hearing held Tuesday June 30, in the Richard Russell federal building. The law was to have become effec tive July 1. The judge issued the temporary restraining order after hearing arguments on the lawsuit filed by Planned Parent hood chapters of Atlanta and Augusta challenging the con stitutionality of the law A hearing on a preliminary injunc tion was scheduled for Thursday. July 16 at 9:30 a.m. In his opening remarks Judge Hall said the hearing had been called not to debate the pros and cons of abortion or to guess what the U.S. Supreme Court might do in the fall term regarding a challenge to another state’s parental notification law under review The state of Georgia was in terested in protecting the immature minor and the question for him was “Have they done it properly?” He said “the court has grave concerns,” citing a statute that concerns rules on confidentiality and expedited appeal issued by the Georgia appellate court. Dara Klassel, lawyer for Planned Parenthood, argued that the parental notification law does not protect the anonymity of the minor who seeks a court waiver of the re quirement to notify her parents. In a case where a court waiver is sought in the absence of the signed affidavit of notification by a parent, the minor’s Social Security number is required along with her initials. This, she claim ed, does not protect the minor’s anonymity. She also claimed that the judicial alternative process could take as long as six days before the waiver could be granted. She claimed this would place undue burdens on the minor because it would involve travel expenses and delays. “Secretary Otis Bowen fired me because I refused to fund abortionists,’’ she said. “I was fired for supporting Ronald Reagan's agenda and not the Bowen agenda. I was fired because I am pro-life. I was fired because I stood up for my convictions." Scott R. Swirling, executive director of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, dis counted allegations against family planners. “Unfortunately, the reality of truth in the law interferes with ... ideological fantasies” of Mrs. Gasper and her sup porters,” he said. “There have been numerous audits that show that Title X (grantee) agencies have never used Title X funds to advocate or promote abortion.” According to the HHS statement. Mrs. Gasper's super visor, Dr. Robert E. Windom, HHS assistant secretary for health, “had directed Mrs. Gasper to temporarily renew funding for several family planning agencies while in vestigating allegations they might be in violation of Title X funding requirements.” The statement said Windom was advised his stance “was legally supportable.” Chuck Kline, HHS deputy assistant secretary for public affairs, told National Catholic News Service July 6 that Mrs. Gasper had previously raised objections about Plan ned Parenthood and had been given five months to review the grants before a recent grant renewal deadline. Windom, in telling her to temporarily renew the Planned Parenthood grants for 60 days, offered her additional time “to prove or disprove her suspicions, and that’s what she refused to go along with,” Kline said. Mrs. Gasper and her superiors had sparred earlier this year over the same issues. In a Jan. 21 memorandum to regional staff, Mrs. Gasper wrote that “Planned Parenthood is a pre-eminent example of an organization which advocates a position in conflict with Title X” and that such organizations “are not to be recipients of Title X funds.” Her order was rescinded within 24 hours by Windom and she was reprimanded. Bowen at that time stated that “if any organization in cludes abortion or abortion-related activities in a family planning program, that program is not eligible for Title X funding. However, other programs of the organization ... not involving abortion or abortion-related activities might be eligible” for such grants, he said. She said 96 percent ol the minors must go to Savannah, Col umbia, Augusta or Atlanta for abortions. In many cases, she said, this involves travel of at least 100 miles on three separate occasions Patricia Downing, an assistant attorney general, defend ing the law for the state of Georgia, said the statute for the 4 new law clearly states that all juvenile court procedures must protect the anonymity of the minor who does not wish to inform her parent of the planned abortion. This includes closed hearings and the sealing of court records She said the parental notification law does not provide the parent with a veto over the minor’s right to an abortion If the parent will not accompany the minor to the abortion clinic and sign an affidavit necessary before the abortion is performed, the law, she argued, provides that an accompa nying adult could “theoretically be a person from the abor tion clinic ” She disputed the claim by Ms. Klassel that obtaining a court waiver could take up to six days, saying that it is “very possible the process could take place all in the same day.” « After hearing arguments for more than an hour. Judge Hall issued the temporary restraining order based on "uncertainty of the rules.” An attorney who had input into the writing of the law which passed the General Assembly last session said he feels optimistic about it being upheld in district court. He is William Hollberg, legislative director for the Georgia Right to Life chapter for three years. But he said the granting of a preliminary injunction by Judge Hall would stop the law from going into effect in definitely. The state could then appeal the injunction through the federal appellate system, in this instance, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, he said. If the in junction is granted, “We will be looking at a couple of years in the 11th Circuit Court.” Mary Boyert, executive director of Georgia Right to Life, said her organization was not surprised by the challenge from Planned Parenthood, but “more or less expected it.” “We still feel comfortable that the bill was written with the U.S. Supreme Court guidelines in mind and that it will hold up in court. We are supporting the governor’s office and the attorney general’s office in their defending of the bill. We encourage people to let them know of their 5 support." Fla. Bishops Seek To Bar Surrogacy TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (NC) — Florida’s nine Catholic bishops urged the state Legislature to outlaw payments for surrogate parenting contracts and to adopt a statement holding that such contracts “are contrary to public policy.” The bishops also recommended that adoption statutes be amended to exclude surrogate parenting arrangements from the special consideration Florida gives to stepparent adoptions. They commented in a statement released by the Florida Catholic Conference in Tallahassee to lawmakers. The Legislature is expected to address the issue during its 1988 session. A surrogate mother becomes pregnant by artificial insemination, carries the child to term, and gives up the child to the father and his spouse. In some cases surrogate mothers provide the service for pay. The bishops said they empathized with the desires of infertile couples to have children, and noted that the church “encourages and supports scientific research into moral means of assisting conception.” But they said technological advances “must be us ed to serve humankind and not to overwhelm it. The fact that we have the capability of doing certain things does not mean we should do them.” In stating their objections, the bishops wrote: “Surrogate parenting violates the marriage cove nant; dehumanizes the procreative process; exploits women, particularly those who take money for the use of their bodies; treats the child as a commodity to be delivered for the payment of a price; ignores the reality of the surrogate mother’s psychological and emotional attachment to her child; subverts the child’s relationship with his or her mother.” Bowen Fires Deputy Who Denied Grants To Planned Parenthood
