Back Alley Butchers vs Main Street Maimers

I'd like to go back again to the theme of legal abortion being ever so much nicer than those nasty back-alley abortions. Let's look at a couple of examples:

Dr. Sidney C. Laughlin
Former employees of Dr. Sidney C. Laughlin alleged that he performed illegal late-term abortions in a bedroom of his home, across the street from an elementary school. Upon investigating the allegation, police found a dismembered 16-week fetus in his trash. The autopsy on the fetus noted right and left arm dismembered at the shoulder, organs, legs and feet, and macerated and opened head containing fragments of brain tissue. The medical examiner also noted other embryonic tissues, blood-stained pads, rubber gloves, and an empty syringe in the bags collected by the police. A nurse who claimed to have assisted in 4 or 5 abortions in his home said Laughlin sterilized abortion instruments in his dishwasher. The nurse said she quit assisting in these abortions after she observed Laughlin aborting a 28-week old fetus, 4 weeks past the 24-week legal limit. She also said Laughlin owed her $3000 in back wages. Equipment found in Laughlin's home included suction machine, medications, and an exam table. One former employee also allegedly said she is now embarrassed to have worked for Laughlin, and that "He laughed about dismembering babies." Laughlin denied disposing of the fetus, saying "I've always disposed of them through a medical [waste company]." Laughlin also denied that it would be improper or illegal to perform abortions in the doctor's home. Because a law restricting 2nd-trimester abortions to hospitals had been found unconstitutional by the state attorney general in 1984, Laughlin said that no law would prevent abortions from being done in a home.
Source: The Sunday Oklahoman 7-5-92

Dr. Milan Vuitch
Patient "Amanda" filed suit, saying that she had an abortion performed by Milan Vuitch at his Laurel Clinic on January 8, 1981. During the abortion, Vuitch lacerated Amanda's uterine wall. Vuitch kept Andrea overnight, in violation of clinic licensing statute. He subsequently moved her to his home, designated as the "Clinic Annex," and cared for his injured patient there.

He then returned her to clinic January 10, and discharged her. On January 11, in severe pain, Amanda was taken to the hospital by relatives and admitted. There, exploratory surgery discovered an unsutured laceration leaving a hole from her vagina into her abdominal cavity, and "significant pelvic and intestinal peritonitis." Amanda had to have a total hysterectomy. Surgeons "also removed a mass of dead tissue from the abdomen, which laboratory analysis revealed was fetal tissue." Vuitch used the company car to transport patients from clinic to the "Annex," "which is not licensed in Maryland to treat patients," and testified to transporting as many as three patients to the "Annex" for overnight stays.

Although Vuitch managed to keep his nose clean when he ws doing criminal abortions, his practice deteriorated after Roe. Sloppy practices by Vuitch resulted in two deaths that I know of: Wilma Harris and Georgianna "Jeannie" English.

Vuitch also testified to lacking hospital privileges since 1963. Vuitch's wife was also held accountable as an officer of the corporation, knowledgeable of Vuitch's practice of keeping patients in home overnight.
Source: DC Court of Appeals 82-1077

Dr. Joe Bills Reynolds
Dr. Joe Bills Reynolds was a jack of all trades, doing a variety of elective surgeries, including abortions, in his filthy clinic. He allegedly performed breast implants, a hysterectomy, and numerous liposuction procedures on his wife. Reynolds' anesthetist, age 60, had originally been hired as a janitor, and an untrained orderly was acting as his nurse. The operating room was littered with dirty cups and papers. Reynolds tried to collect $500,000 on his wife's life insurance after she bled to death after he opened 25-inch incision, ostensibly for liposuction, on September 7, 1989. Reynolds reportedly would not allow paramedics to aid her until he had finished stapling the incision. He told his wife's father that she was assisting in surgery and "fell dead." Reynolds was found guilty of second-degree manslaughter. He voluntarily surrendered his Oklahoma license. Reynolds allegedly had two suits filed over liposuction malpractice, including the near death of his housekeeper Betty Adams August 11, 1989, due to perforated intestines.
Source: The Daily Oklahoman 4-22-91

Blue Coral Medical Center
Blue Coral Medical Center was temporarily shut down under an emergency order describing "deplorable conditions," including:

a suction device with "green mold" growing in it improperly discarded bloodstained sponges generally poor infection control about 70 different kinds of medication with expired dates unsafely administered general anesthesia stirrups covered with blood untrained workers monitoring women in recovery

Ghali also worked at Miami's notorious Dadeland abortion mill, where his quackery contributed to the death of abortion patient Ellen Williams.

An inspector was quoted as saying, "When we got there, there wasn't any soap in the place, so our inspectors had to go next door to wash their hands." Blue Coral's owner, Nabil Ghali, had already had his medical license revoked in Florida and Kentucky due to a conviction for having sex with his 14-year-old goddaughter. Blue Coral was re-opened under stipulations.
Sources: Miami Herald 9-28-89, 1-4-90

Ladies First Medical Center
Ladies First Medical Center was temporarily closed by the board of health in 1989 "after finding dead cockroaches in a sterilizing room, unsanitary surgical gloves, expired drugs and bloody equipment." Inspectors also noted:

"hundreds of medicines and medical supplies that had expired years ago and other medications with no expiration date, indicating they were manufactured before 1978"
The Health Secretary described Ladies First as "just filthy, the worst I've seen." One of the inspectors told a reporter, "I spent years inspecting clinics in prisons all through Florida. And we wouldn't have waited a minute to close a prison clinic long before it ever looked this bad. I couldn't believe how bad this place was." A reporter allegedly called Ladies First and spoke with cleaning woman who said "I think the charges are really exaggerated. We did the best we can. It's not really that bad, the way they say it." Ladies First was re-opened under stipulations.
Source: Miami Herald 10-2-89, 1-4-90

Anybody who thinks that these fly-by-nights are an improvement on what abortionists offered before legalization owes criminal abortionists an appology. Abortionists like Robert Spencer and George Timanus would roll over in their graves if anybody compared their practices with these places.

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