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News, 30 April 2004

Leslie Martin, the New Zealand euthanasia campaigner convicted of attempting to murder her terminally ill mother, has been sentenced to 15 months imprisonment. Justice John Wild placed Ms Martin "squarely at the mercy killing end of the spectrum" but criticised her arrogance and lack of remorse. Prosecutor Andrew Cameron said: "Sanctity of life underpins our law in the most fundamental way." Ms Martin's lawyer said that she would appeal the sentence. [Scotsman, 30 April]


The nurse on trial for the attempted murder of four elderly patients had a history of abusing patients, the Telegraph reports. A court heard how Barbara Salisbury would remove drips and give overdoses of diamorphine, making comments such as "this has gone on long enough" and "why prolong the inevitable?" A health care worker said that Ms Salisbury often pressed the booster on the Graseby device designed to administer diamorphine over a long period so many times that it cut off. [The Telegraph, 30 April]


A US television channel has sparked outrage over its plans to screen a show this evening in which five couples compete to win a teenage mother's baby. A trailer for the ABC show described it as "a unique television event - five couples desperate to adopt, all competing for her baby." During the show, the mother will question the couples and finally decide which couple should take her child. [The Times of London, 30 April]


The Uruguay Senate is considering a bill to legalise abortion. The House has already approved the proposal, which would legalise abortion during the first three months of pregnancy and require all health facilities to provide abortions, though pro-life campaigners hope that the country's president will veto it. The pro-abortion campaign is being supported by 'Catholics' for a Free Choice and the Evangelical Waldesian Church of Uruguay has said that it does not oppose the legislation. Fears have been expressed by pro-life advocates that if Uruguay bows to pro-abortion pressure, other Hispanic countries will follow. [Lifenews.com, 29 April]


Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline has called for abortion clinics to be more tightly regulated after presenting evidence of a dirty, dangerous abortion facility operating in Kansas City. Photographs, police and witness statements about Dr Krishna Rajanna's abortion facility revealed aborted babies kept in the same refrigerator as food and medicine and surgical instruments stored in a bathroom, amongst other health and safety hazards. Dr Rajanna said that the clinic was safe and hygienic, accusing Kline of trying to forward an anti-abortion agenda. [ljworld.com, 29 April]


Researchers in Florida have reported that adult stem cells taken from bone marrow have successfully transformed themselves into brain tissue in three human subjects. The breakthrough could potentially lead to adult stem cells being used to treat conditions such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and MS. The team from the University of Florida Shands Cancer Centre published their findings in The Lancet medical journal. Dr Edward Scott who led the group said: "The study suggests that bone marrow could be used as a therapeutic source of readily harvestable cells for the regeneration of nerve cells, with the potential application to various neurodegenerative diseases and traumatic central nervous system damage." [The Herald, 30 April]


Nancy Pelosi, a San Francisco Democrat and pro-abortion Catholic has said that she will continue to receive communion, in spite of comments from a Vatican Cardinal that Catholic politicians who support abortion should not receive communion. Ms Pelosi told a press conference: "I believe that my position on choice is one that is consistent with my Catholic upbringing, which said that every person has a free will and has the responsibility to live their lives in a way that they would have to account for in the end." [The Guardian, 29 April]


The Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada has said in a pamphlet that the morning after pill should be available without prescription in schools, pharmacies and family planning clinics. [LifeSiteNews.com, 29 April]

To subscribe to SPUC's email information services, please visit www.spuc.org.uk/em-signup. The reliability of the news herein is dependent on that of the cited sources, which are paraphrased rather than quoted. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the society. © Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, 2012