THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, February 13, 1997 TAG: 9702130310
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LYNN WALTZ, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 96 lines
Jennifer Sperle, 24, the mother of four children 5 and younger, was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison Wednesday for trying to burn abortion clinics in Norfolk and Newport News in 1994 and 1995.
After the sentencing, Sperle alternately rocked her 5-year-old daughter and her 5-month-old son, whom she nurses. She said she hopes to serve her time in a prison that allows nursing or frequent contact.
Sperle, who dropped lit flares through mail slots in an unsuccessful attempt to shut down two local clinics, is the first defendant to be sentenced as a result of a 16-month grand jury inquiry into abortion clinic violence.
The Alexandria-based grand jury disbanded in early 1996 after finding no proof of a nationwide conspiracy to commit violence against abortion clinics.
Sperle on Wednesday told U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson she was sorry for what she had done - using kerosene and traffic flares to try to set fires - and said she had learned violence was not the answer.
``I made a mistake,'' Sperle said in a soft voice. ``I ask for my baby and the children that you give them consideration, too.''
After court, Sperle said of her sentence, ``If the babies don't get justice, why should anyone else expect it?'' Sperle, who lived in Norfolk at the time of the fires, has moved to Wichita, Kan.
Sperle said she believed ``she was on a mission from God to stop abortion'' when she legally protested for years, then got involved in illegal activities. Supporters in court Wednesday hoped Sperle would receive probation because the damage was limited - about $1,300 at one clinic - and she is nursing her baby.
``This husband will have to daily care for four children for two years, providing all the nurture, love and care. Hearing them ask, where is their mother? This is unbelievable punishment,'' Sperle's attorney, Blair Howard, said in asking for the minimum sentence of 27 months.
U.S. Justice Department prosecutor Thomas N. Burrows pressed for the maximum sentence of 33 months, saying only luck prevented the fire at the Norfolk clinic from spreading. On two occasions after the fire, Sperle said, she wanted to ``blow it off the face of the Earth,'' court papers show.
Burrows said Sperle's actions were more serious than physical damage indicated.
``This caused fear and apprehension among the workers who are providing a lawful medical service,'' Burrows said. ``They were left with the knowledge that threats are serious. That creates terror. This was a violent terrorist act.''
Howard painted a picture of a confused, manipulated young girl from a broken family who had a tragic childhood. She was sexually assaulted at age 11, then sexually abused by a high school teacher 23 years her senior. She got pregnant and got an abortion at her mother's urging, Howard said.
In the early 1980s, she was hospitalized for depression and suicidal thoughts. When doctors urged her to abort her third pregnancy for possible health reasons, she refused. The child was fine, but the event triggered post-traumatic stress linked to the abortion, Howard said. That, in turn, led to the violence, Howard said.
Government psychiatrists concluded that Sperle's mental condition was exaggerated and found no signs of post-traumatic stress syndrome, court papers show.
On Dec. 13, 1994, Sperle dropped a lit traffic flare and lighter fluid through a mail slot at the Peninsula center on Jefferson Avenue in Newport News.
On March 6, 1995, she poured kerosene through a mail slot at the Norfolk center in the 800 block of Norfolk Square and dropped a lit flare that fell onto a rubber-backed floor mat, extinguishing itself after causing about $1,300 damage.
Sperle was indicted the following March for conspiracy to commit arson, two counts of arson and two counts of using fire to commit a felony. All charges except the conspiracy charge were dropped when Sperle pleaded guilty Nov. 4.
Clark Ryan Martin, who was accused of helping Sperle in the attacks on the clinics, is awaiting sentence after pleading guilty to a single conspiracy charge and cooperating against Sperle.
Sperle has refused to testify against a third person who allegedly helped with the fires. Wednesday, she said the person did not exist.
About 15 friends and colleagues wrote Judge Jackson urging him to show leniency. One letter was from the mother of a girl Sperle counseled out of an abortion. ``Somehow, miraculously, on that cold and dark day. . . Jennifer Sperle filled my daughter's head with loving thoughts about her unborn baby. . wrote.
Local anti-abortionist, the Rev. Donald Spitz, said he was disappointed by the sentence.
``It's a tragedy,'' he said. ``This type of thing makes people even more resolved. We're not going to stop our fight to keep babies from being murdered. It's a battle, and some fall, but it doesn't mean the battle is lost.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
GARY C. KNAPP
Jennifer Sperle leaves the Federal Building in Norfolk on Wednesday
with her daughter. Sperle is the first defendant to be sentenced as
part of a 16-month grand jury inquiry.
Jennifer Sperle told U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson she was
sorry for what she had done - ``I made a mistake.''
KEYWORDS: SENTENCING ABORTION CLINIC FIRE