A pro-life org just bought out and shut down a late-term abortion clinic

Some children inherit money, or houses or cars from their parents. Todd Stave inherited an abortion clinic when his father died. Now, he's reluctantly selling it to a local pro-life organization.

Stave's Germantown, Maryland, facility was one of the few left in the nation to publicly offer late-term abortion services. The abortions were performed by LeRoy Carhart, an abortionist who commuted from Nebraska.

Stave said he feels "sadness" and that he's "letting the public down" by not being able to provide late-term abortions (late-term is defined as 20 to 26 weeks pregnant or later).

Still pro-choice, but 'it's a business'

Stave, saying he can no longer manage the costs of security and operations amid decreasing abortion rates, is selling the office to the Maryland Coalition for Life, a pro-life group that opened a crisis pregnancy center across the parking lot.

He said he's still a pro-choice abortion rights supporter, but "it's still a business."

"And a business has to make money," Stave said.

Troubled history

The clinic, Germantown Reproductive Health Services, has operated for more than two decades, and used to provide other reproductive health services besides abortions.

Carhart began performing late-term abortions at the clinic in 2010, when his home state of Nebraska outlawed abortions later than 20 weeks.

His arrival in Maryland was met with fervent protest. From then on, Germantown Reproductive Health Services was strictly an abortion provider.

In 2013, a woman died after having a late-term abortion at the clinic, but calls to shut it down at that time were unsuccessful.

A pro-life victory

"They're going to claim victory," Stave said of the pro-life group purchasing his clinic.

Yes, they will. And they should, as closing down the Germantown abortion clinic has been a long-time goal for the Maryland Coalition for Life.

“It’s a miracle. You fight for something for seven years, and all of a sudden it’s handed to you,” said Dennis Donnelly, media director for the coalition.

The group was able to purchase the clinic through donations and fundraising efforts.

Encouraging statistics

From a Guttmacher Institute study earlier this year:

• The abortion rate has fallen to its lowest rate since Roe v. Wade. In 2014, there were 14.6 abortions per 1,000 women age 15-44. That number was as high as 29.3 in the early 1980s.
• The number of abortions fell below 1 million per year in for the first time since 1975.
• 90 percent of all U.S. counties had no abortion clinic as of 2014.

(H/T Washington Post)