Police suspect an arson could possibly have caused a chimney that destroyed a clinic under the structure in Casper that would be Wyoming’s only site for abortion procedures.
One person called 911 shortly before dawn Wednesday to report seeing someone with a can of gasoline fleeing construction near downtown Casper. Smoke was escaping from the windows of the building by the time the government arrived, Casper police said.
The facility appears to have internal damage, one of its organizers said later Wednesday. Wellspring Health Access, the nonprofit that develops the clinic, plans to make repairs. But founder Julie Burkhart said the clinic’s scheduled opening in June is unclear. I’m unhappy and angry that other people are taking it upon themselves to shut us down in this way,” Burkhart said, speaking on the phone from outside the building.
Even before the fire, the long term of the clinic was unclear. Wellspring is pressing ahead with its plan despite a U. S. Supreme Court ruling. The U. S. Government is approaching and expected to repeal constitutional abortion rights protections in the landmark 1973 case of Roe v. A recently enacted “activation law” in Wyoming would go into effect days after such a decision, banning the maximum number of abortions in the state.
Burkhart said Wednesday she was convinced no one was injured by the fire.
She said the construction comprises furniture, examination tables and medical equipment. He suspects that the interior of the building was broken through the chimney and smoke, as the walls gave the impression of being blackened.
Bob Brechtel, who helped organize outdoor anti-abortion prayer vigils at the Casper site, condemned the alleged arson. “We’re sorry this happened,” said Brechtel, who was once the state’s Republican lawmaker. “Something like this doesn’t serve us or anyone else. Damaging someone else’s property would solve nothing, so we would not tolerate it in any way.
Brechtel said other people attending the weekly vigils are asked to sign a document that promises not to be violent and allow other people to enter the facility.
Burkhart said local police and the U. S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. U. S. personnel were at the scene on Wednesday. She hopes the clinic’s surveillance cameras will capture the alleged arsonist.
Casper police spokeswoman Rebekah Ladd said investigators were reviewing camera footage. If they find transparent photographs of the suspect, they will ask the public to identify the person.
The other clinic in Wyoming that performs abortions is in Jackson, a five-hour drive west, and provides medical abortions up to 10 weeks gestation.
The new Casper Clinic plans to offer medication and procedural abortions. This would be the closest position to have an abortion for many other people in what the nonprofit’s founders describe as an “abortion desert,” stretching from eastern Wyoming to western Nebraska and southern Dakota.
This is not the first time clinics that provide abortions have been targeted. A Planned Parenthood clinic in Tennessee was destroyed in a arson on New Year’s Eve. Years earlier, the guy from the fatal bombing at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics had also bombed two clinics that provide abortions.
Meanwhile, the workplace of an anti-abortion organization in Wisconsin was recently attacked with Molotov cocktails. An abortion rights organization claimed responsibility, but police made no arrests.
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Police suspect an arson could possibly have caused a chimney that destroyed a clinic under the structure in Casper that would be Wyoming’s only site for abortion procedures.
One person called 911 shortly before dawn Wednesday to report seeing someone with a can of gasoline fleeing construction near downtown Casper. Smoke was escaping from the windows of the building by the time the government arrived, Casper police said.
The facility appears to have internal damage, one of its organizers said later Wednesday. Wellspring Health Access, the nonprofit that develops the clinic, plans to make repairs. But founder Julie Burkhart said the clinic’s scheduled opening in June is unclear. I’m unhappy and angry that other people are taking it upon themselves to shut us down in this way,” Burkhart said, speaking on the phone from outside the building.
Even before the fire, the long term of the clinic was unclear. Wellspring is pressing ahead with its plan despite a U. S. Supreme Court ruling. The U. S. Government is approaching and expected to repeal constitutional abortion rights protections in the landmark 1973 case of Roe v. A recently enacted “activation law” in Wyoming would go into effect days after such a decision, banning the maximum number of abortions in the state.
Burkhart said Wednesday she was convinced no one was injured by the fire.
She said the construction comprises furniture, examination tables and medical equipment. He suspects that the interior of the building was broken through the chimney and smoke, as the walls gave the impression of being blackened.
Bob Brechtel, who helped organize outdoor anti-abortion prayer vigils at the Casper site, condemned the alleged arson. “We’re sorry this happened,” said Brechtel, who was once the state’s Republican lawmaker. “Something like this doesn’t serve us or anyone else. Damaging someone else’s property would solve nothing, so we would not tolerate it in any way.
Brechtel said other people attending the weekly vigils are asked to sign a document that promises not to be violent and allow other people to enter the facility.
Burkhart said local police and the U. S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. U. S. personnel were at the scene on Wednesday. She hopes the clinic’s surveillance cameras have captured the alleged arsonist.
Casper police spokeswoman Rebekah Ladd said investigators were reviewing camera footage. If they find transparent photographs of the suspect, they will ask the public to identify the person.
The other clinic in Wyoming that performs abortions is in Jackson, a five-hour drive west, and provides medical abortions up to 10 weeks gestation.
The new Casper Clinic plans to offer medication and procedural abortions. This would be the closest position to have an abortion for many other people in what the nonprofit’s founders describe as an “abortion desert,” stretching from eastern Wyoming to western Nebraska and southern Dakota.
This is not the first time clinics that provide abortions have been targeted. A Planned Parenthood clinic in Tennessee was destroyed in a arson on New Year’s Eve. Years earlier, the guy from the fatal bombing at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics had also bombed two clinics that provide abortions.
Meanwhile, the workplace of an anti-abortion organization in Wisconsin was recently attacked with Molotov cocktails. An abortion rights organization claimed responsibility, but police made no arrests.
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