Lesser charge 'could justify violence'
January 13, 2010 - 2:19PM
AFP
A judge could create a legal justification for politically tinged violence if he allows a man who admits shooting dead a leading abortion doctor to argue for conviction on a lesser charge than murder, prosecutors say.
Scott Roeder, 51, is charged with first-degree murder in the May 31 shooting death of George Tiller, one of a handful of doctors in the US to perform abortions into the third trimester of pregnancies.
Roeder's trial is set to begin on Wednesday.
Tiller had been a lightning rod for anti-abortion foes, who nicknamed him "Tiller the baby killer".
Roeder has admitted killing the doctor in the foyer of Tiller's church, saying he did so to protect unborn children.
Prosecutors say he should not be able to present evidence that he is guilty of a lesser crime, voluntary manslaughter.
Under Kansas law, voluntary manslaughter can apply if a defendant acts on an "unreasonable but honest" belief that he is preventing harm to himself or others.
Sedgwick County District Court judge Warren Wilbert said during a pre-trial hearing Tuesday he cannot decide whether to admit such evidence until he hears it.
Kim Parker, the deputy district attorney prosecuting Roeder, said in a motion that the court "should not be the first to enable a defendant to justify premeditated murder because of an emotionally charged belief".
"Such a ruling has far-reaching consequences," Parker wrote.
"Taken to its logical extreme, this line of thinking would allow anyone to commit premeditated murder, but only be guilty of manslaughter, simply because the victim holds a different set of moral and political beliefs than the attacker."
The judge's decision echoed similar statements he made on Friday that sparked strong reactions from Americans on both sides of the abortion debate.
Some abortion rights supporters said abortion providers would be at risk from anybody who held different beliefs, while some abortion opponents applauded.
But Wilbert said on Tuesday there is another crucial criterion for voluntary manslaughter - the defendant must believe such danger is "imminent."
Tiller, 67, was shot dead in the foyer of his church, where he was serving as an usher. His clinic in Wichita had been the target of protests and occasional violence for decades.
Jury selection in the trial is set to begin on Wednesday, having been delayed two days while prosecutors tried to exclude the manslaughter defence from the trial.
© 2010 AFP
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Originally Posted by Nickdfresh
