Kansas Inquisition          

Like most places in America, Kansas is a place where most citizens are pretty sure that the Spanish Inquisition won’t show up, demanding to look at medical records.

But that’s not precisely true. Many Kansans are apparently unaware that they have their own little midwestern Torquemada, sitting in the Attorney General’s office. He’s Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline, a man who likes inquisitions and has been conducting his very own.

In secret.

In doing so, it turns out he’s trying to subpoena medical records. But not just any medical records, just the records of girls and women who have undergone abortions.

Like Tomas de Torquemada, Kline enjoys working in  secret.

Fortunately, all that ended when the press found out about his activities.

According to The Wichita Eagle, Kline, a man known for his dislike of a woman's right to choose, has been trying to look into the medical records of two Kansas abortion facilities, Wichita's Women's Health Care Services and Overland Park's Comprehensive Health of Planned Parenthood of Kansas & Mid-Missouri.

Both these clinics are fighting the AG on the issue of turning over medical records for what appears to be little more than a fishing expedition, as opposed to a proper criminal investigation.

Mr Kline wants to look at these records, he says, because he is trying to find out if there is any evidence of the crime of statutory rape. Also Mr Kline is worried that the clinics in question might also have violated Kansas’ ban on late term abortions. Kansas bans abortions after the 22nd week of pregnancy unless necessary to preserve the health of the mother.

Surprisingly, the Kansas AG gets a lot of help from Kansas law.

Kansas allows inquisitions.

Hard to believe?

Well check this out: Chapter 22 , Article 31 of the Kansas Criminal Procedure Code, allows the Kansas Attorney General to engage in something called a criminal inquisition. And in the process, subpoena records, if he believes he can find evidence that a crime has been committed.

Don’t forget the gag rule. At present, finding out exactly what the Kansas AG is up to has been difficult and remains so, because of a gag order granted on the AG’s request.

Of course, there’s no disputing the question that if a statutory rape has been committed, then it is the duty of law enforcement authorities to find and apprehend the perpetrator.

But what is the real possibility that looking through the records of a medical clinic will help law enforcement authorities find a rapist?

Many abortionists do in fact perform abortions on under-aged girls. Many of these pregnancies are the result of rape. Many victims are reluctant to identify their attackers. So if the victim refuses to identify her attacker, there is nothing anyone can do about it. Not the AG, not the police, not anyone. If the victim has already identified her attacker, then the police have a suspect they can process, usually with the help of DNA evidence.

Either way, the local police should be able to handle a case of statutory rape.

Apparently Mr Kline does not trust the local police to make a proper investigation, if they become aware that a statutory rape has occurred.

Mr Kline is also demanding records of late-term abortions. He wants these records, he says, in order to make sure that the abortions performed in abortion clinics complied with the Kansas law which bans abortions performed after 22 weeks, unless necessary to preserve the life and health of the mother.

The question of whether or not a late term abortion is necessary to protect the life and health of the mother is a judgment call by the doctor. Not the attorney general.

It looks as if Mr Kline wants to try to second guess Kansas doctors when it comes to late-term abortions. Again, for what purpose?

Simple harassment comes to mind.

It could be that Mr Kline wants to make life so difficult for abortionists, that they will shut down their clinics and move somewhere else.

But why Mr Kline originally set up his legal fishing expedition it not known. Given his past history of opposing abortion it’s reasonable to assume he’s doing his level best to close the two remaining abortion clinics in Kansas. Not for actual violations of law, but just because he doesn’t want them in Kansas.

To an outsider it looks like the Kansas AG is trying to get rid of abortions clinics in his state, largely by simply harassing them out of business with expensive and baseless investigations.

Just another attempt by local officials to make the landmark case of Roe v Wade operationally inapplicable.

Ultimately the courts will have to make a decision as to whether or not such demands for medical records can be undertake by state authorities.

In in the meantime, at the very least, the gag order in this matter should be lifted so everyone would have a clearer picture of Mr Kline’s motivation to start a secret investigation.

Punditwalla--