General practitioner Kermit Gosnell, who became known more than a decade ago on first-degree murder charges for the serial killing of babies who survived botched abortion procedures, has died in a US prison at the age of 85.
The doctor, sentenced to life in prison and without the right to parole, maintained an abortion clinic and carried out his actions even in advanced stages of pregnancy, which was prohibited by law.
The investigation against him began after the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office became aware of the illegal sale of opioid prescriptions. Then, complaints from former employees about the torture and murders that took place there came to light.
When accessing the clinic where the crimes took place, the authorities involved in the investigation found several unsanitary and bloody equipment, discovered that people without professional training and license were working in the administration of medications that induced labor, in addition to falsifying ultrasound results to hide the advanced stage of pregnancy.
In addition to the victims in the making, Gosnell was also convicted of manslaughter for the death of one of his patients after staff administered a lethal dose of anesthesia during an abortion.
At the time of the scandal, prosecutors responsible for the case detailed in court that the clinic where Gosnell worked was a true “house of horrors”. They reported that the doctor injected a substance to stop the baby’s heartbeat while performing abortions, often after 24 weeks of gestation, but, in some cases, the drug did not work and he began to use more violent methods, such as using surgical scissors to decapitate the babies. Afterwards, the bodies were stored in containers at the site.
The jury report at the time concluded that the GP “killed living, viable, moving, breathing and crying babies”. The case gained wide repercussion in the USA and is still remembered by anti-abortion activists.
