Missouri accuses Planned Parenthood of 'trafficking' minors to get abortions

[March 01, 2024]  By Brendan Pierson

(Reuters) -Missouri's Republican attorney general on Thursday sued a Planned Parenthood affiliate, accusing it of helping minors travel to Kansas to get abortions without notifying their parents in violation of state law.

The lawsuit by Attorney General Andrew Bailey cites undercover footage released by the conservative Project Veritas last year purporting to show a Planned Parenthood Great Plains employee offer to arrange an abortion for a 13-year-old in Kansas. Missouri law bans nearly all abortions, as well as helping a minor get an abortion out of state without parental consent.

Bailey's office called the lawsuit "the culmination of a multi-year campaign to drive Planned Parenthood from the State of Missouri," accusing it of violating other state laws in the past.

The attorney general is seeking an order from the Circuit Court of Boone County barring the reproductive health organization from helping minors get abortions.

A spokesperson for Planned Parenthood Great Plains said it does not provide transportation directly to patients. Its president, Emily Wales, said in a statement that the lawsuit was "based on 'evidence' from fraudulent, extreme anti-abortion actors" and that the organization would "continue following state and federal laws."

"Planned Parenthood can try to turn the spotlight back on us, but they've been caught breaking the law," a Project Veritas spokesperson said in an email.

A sign urging voters to reject a state constitutional amendment declaring there is no right to abortion is seen during the primary election and abortion referendum at a Wyandotte County polling station in Kansas City, Kansas, U.S. August 2, 2022. REUTERS/Eric Cox/File Photo

Project Veritas frequently releases hidden camera footage seeking to show alleged wrongdoing by left-leaning organizations. It has frequently been accused of using deceptive tactics.

Missouri is one of about 20 Republican-led states that have banned or restricted abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, which had guaranteed abortion rights nationwide.

Abortion remains legal until about 22 weeks in Kansas after voters in August 2022 rejected an effort to remove protections for it from the state's constitution.

(Reporting by Brendan Pierson in New York; Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Richard Chang)

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