THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, December 31, 1994 TAG: 9412310304
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: By DEBRA GORDON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 58 lines
An anti-abortion activist in Hampton Roads called Friday's shooting at two Massachusetts abortion clinics justified and moral, the latest attack in a rapidly escalating war against abortion.
``As long as the deed is done to save innocent babies being put to death, any action to save those babies is moral and just,'' said Donald Spitz, director of the Chesapeake-based Pro-Life Virginia.
The latest violence may mean increased security for Norfolk's Hillcrest Clinic. In August, after a doctor and his bodyguard were killed outside a Florida abortion clinic, U.S. marshals were stationed at the Norfolk clinic at the request of the National Abortion Federation and the Feminist Majority.
The federation requested additional marshals just hours after Friday's shooting, said Patricia Anderson, the foundation's access initiative director. It is her job to guarantee access to abortion clinics.
``The violence is out of hand, and now nobody can deny that there is terrorism happening at U.S. abortion clinics,'' she said.
``We need to sit down with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the FBI and the Justice Department, and say, `Let's come up with a plan for increased security for clinics and patients.' ''
That may mean more marshals, bulletproof glass or metal detectors, Anderson said. ``I don't know to what extent people will go, but clearly we have to do more.''
Anti-abortion activists say it is a war now, the natural result of failed peaceful efforts during the 22 years since the Supreme Court legalized abortion.
That failure, said David Crane, director of the anti-abortion Citizens for Justice, ``is leading some to say that diplomatic channels are not effective and it's time to use physical force to stop the slaughter.''
And while he would neither condone nor condemn the killings, he described it as consistent with the practice it aims to stop. ``If you believe the unborn to be of equal value, then you would apply the same standard of defense'' to them as to adults, he said.
Spitz and Crane on Friday joined a protest outside the office of a Newport News doctor who performs abortions. The have taken part in protests outside Hillcrest, too.
On Friday, staffers at the Norfolk clinic were in shock.
``We're obviously concerned for the people who have been wounded and for their loved ones and family,'' said Hillcrest spokeswoman Suzette Caton. ``We're just so shocked by the whole thing. It's taking all of us some time to absorb the fact that this has happened.''
But while employees are frightened, both for themselves and their patients, they also are determined that the clinic remain open and accessible.
``The women and men who work here feel very strongly that abortion must remain safe, and that we're providing a needed service.''
KEYWORDS: MURDER ABORTION CLINIC SHOOTING by CNB