Court Warns Abortion Foes on Use of Inflammatory Words

An exasperated Municipal Court judge warned five anti-abortion activists Thursday that they would be held in contempt of court if they continued to use such terms as “killing centers” when referring to abortion clinics during their trial.

“I’m putting each one of you on notice,” Judge Richard A. Paez told the leaders of the anti-abortion group, Operation Rescue. “Any more questions that are inflammatory in nature . . . you’re going to get yourselves in contempt.”

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The admonishment was the latest in a series of warnings to five Operation Rescue organizers, including founder Randall Terry, who are on trial on trespassing, conspiracy and other related charges stemming from a March 25 protest at a Los Angeles abortion clinic.

Though Paez has maintained that his courtroom will be not become a forum in which to debate the morality of abortion, the issue has cropped up in everything from pretrial motions to the defense team’s questioning of witnesses.

“I don’t want any more words like ‘killing centers, abortuary, aboratorium, (or) abortion mills,’ ” said Paez, who during the course of the two-week trial has had to dismiss the jury in order to screen the defense’s questions.

Earlier this week, the judge stormed off the bench in disgust because of language used by Terry.

But Terry, whose references earlier in the day to abortion chambers and mills led to a hastily called recess and the judge’s threat to hold him in contempt, argued that he had a constitutional right to use whatever words he wanted in describing such facilities.

“It is offensive to me--I’m a Christian--to call it an abortion clinic,” said Terry, adding that an order to do otherwise “is a violation of my First Amendment rights.”

On trial with the 30-year-old Terry are Jeff White, 31, of Santa Cruz; Andrew Eppink, 41, Palmdale; Donald Bennette, 36, Mission Viejo, and Michael McMonagle, 36, Philadelphia, Pa.

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Besides trespassing and conspiracy, members of the group also face charges of violating court orders and resisting arrest. All are misdemeanors.

After the heated exchange and a final warning by the judge, the defense resumed questioning of its first witness, Los Angeles Police Capt. Patrick E. McKinley. The defense was attempting to show that Operation Rescue protesters were defending themselves against police brutality rather than resisting arrest during the March demonstration.

Defense attorneys contend that police used excessive force during the sit-in. They cite as evidence a videotape showing McMonagle’s arrest during the protest and statements made by McKinley that “the demonstrators have an unusual capacity to withstand pain.”

McKinley acknowledged that he had made such statements. The statements were made in a court declaration filed to oppose an attempt by Operation Rescue members to have police restrained from using what are called pain compliance holds on arrestees.

“This officer knew there was a lot of force used on March 25,” defense attorney Cyrus Zal said outside court.

He said McKinley’s statements indicated that “he was looking for some kind of excuse for that force. . . .”

“There is unwillingness on the part of the police to take responsibility for the use of excessive force,” he said.

In the afternoon session, defendant White, acting as his own counsel, managed to find alternative labels for the abortion clinic during his examination of witnesses. For example, the clinic, in his phrasing, became the place “where they empty the contents of the uterus.”

Such tactics were designed to prove a point, Zal said.

“All we’re saying is call a spade a spade,” he said. “And abortion kills babies.”