Police Serve Planned Parenthood With Search Warrant for Aborted Fetus in Child Rape Case

Police in Spokane, Wash. served a local Planned Parenthood with a search warrant Wednesday to take DNA evidence from an aborted fetus as part of an investigation into a child rape case.

According to Spokane's KREM 2 News, police hope to prove paternity by pulling DNA from the aborted fetal tissue to and matching it to that of a 21-year-old suspect accused in the third-degree rape of a child.

Records say the victim, whose name is not being used, became pregnant in early August. When her parents found out from her school the next month, they took her to Planned Parenthood where she had an abortion Sept. 20.

At the same time, police served Planned Parenthood with a warrant to seize the aborted fetus for DNA testing to bolster their case against the suspect, who has not yet been charged.

Karl Eastlund, interim CEO of the Spokane-area Planned Parenthood, told KREM he couldn't comment on the specifics of the case due to privacy laws, but said they are cooperating with authorities.

"We are a proud partner with law enforcement and we work with them a lot," he said.

According to KREM, this is not the first instance of local law enforcement using DNA from an aborted fetus as part of an investigation.

The testing is expected to take up to several weeks.