Suspect Jailed In Abortion Doctor's Slay

51-Year-Old Man Held In Killing Of Kansas Doctor Who Performed Late-Term Abortions

(CBS/AP)  A man suspected of shooting to death a well known provider of late-term abortions was in jail Monday while investigators looked into possible connections to anti-abortion groups.

Dr. George Tiller, 67, was serving as an usher during morning services Sunday when he was shot in the foyer of Reformation Lutheran Church in Wichita, Kansas, police said. The gunman fired one shot at Tiller and threatened two other people who tried to stop him.

The suspect, identified by one law enforcement agency as Scott Roeder, was taken into custody some 170 miles away in a Kansas City suburb about three hours after the shooting.

Roeder's ex-wife - who did not want her face shown - says he was obsessed with fighting abortion, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Glor.

"I think he thinks he's right," she told Glor. "And that he was justified in doing what he's done."

His brother, David Roeder, told The Topeka Capital-Journal the family is "shocked, horrified and filled with sadness at the death of Dr. Tiller" and the possible involvement of their relative.

He called his sibling "kind and loving," but said he suffered from mental illness at times in his life.

"None of us ever saw Scott as a person capable of or willing to take another person's life," David Roeder said.

Tiller had been a lightning rod for abortion opponents for decades. The women's clinic he ran is one of three in the United States where abortions are performed after the 21st week of pregnancy, when the fetus is considered viable, and has been the site of repeated protests for about two decades.

A protester shot Tiller in both arms in 1993, and his clinic was bombed in 1985.

The threat against Tiller was so constant that his clinic had fortress-like security - around the clock guards and surveillance cameras, reports Glor. When he left, he often traveled with a bodyguard, in a bulletproof vehicle.

Sedgwick County District Attorney Nola Foulston indicated that charges against Scott Roeder will not be filed Monday. Foulston noted that the state has 48 hours to charge anyone who is in custody and said she planned to take the full two days to decide. She said any charges would be filed in state court.

Also, a law enforcement official said investigators have searched two homes as part of the inquiry into Tiller's killing. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the investigation, said the homes are in Merriam, Kansas, and directly across the border in Kansas City, Missouri.

Roeder's former wife, Lindsey Roeder, said he had lived at a house in Merriam but moved out months ago.

Roeder, 51, was returned to Wichita and was being held without bail on one count of first-degree murder and two counts of aggravated assault.

Outside the clinic, flowers were placed along a fence, and the anti-abortion group Kansas Coalition for Life left a sign saying members had prayed for Tiller's change of heart, "not his murder."

In Washington, the U.S. Marshals Service said that as a result of Tiller's shooting, Attorney General Eric Holder had ordered it to "increase security for a number of individuals and facilities." It gave no details.

Tiller himself last had protection from the U.S. marshals in 2001. He and other doctors received such protection at different times in the 1990s.

A man with the same name as the suspect has a criminal record and a background of anti-abortion postings on sympathetic Web sites. In one post written in 2007 on the Web site for the militant anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, a man identifying himself as Scott Roeder asked if anyone had thought of attending Tiller's church to ask the doctor and other worshippers about his work. "Doesn't seem like it would hurt anything but bring more attention to Tiller," the post said.

But police said all early indications showed the shooter acted alone.

Operation Rescue condemned the killing as vigilantism and "a cowardly act," and the group's president, Troy Newman, said Roeder "has never been a member, contributor or volunteer." He may have posted to the organization's open Internet blog, Newman said, but so have thousands of nonmembers.

Operation Rescue founder Randall Terry, whose protests have often targeted Tiller, called the slain doctor "a mass murderer," adding: "He was an evil man - his hands were covered with blood."

In 1996, a 38-year-old man named Scott Roeder was charged in Topeka with criminal use of explosives for having bomb components in his car trunk and sentenced to 2 years of probation. However, his conviction was overturned on appeal the next year after a higher court said evidence against Roeder was seized by law enforcement officers during an illegal search of his car.

At the time, police said the FBI had identified Roeder as a member of the anti-government Freemen group, an organization that kept the FBI at bay in Jordan, Montana, for almost three months in 1995-96. Authorities would not immediately confirm if their suspect was the same man.

Morris Wilson, a commander of the Kansas Unorganized Citizens Militia in the mid-1990s, told The Kansas City Star he knew Roeder fairly well.

"I'd say he's a good ol' boy, except he was just so fanatic about abortion," Wilson said. "He was always talking about how awful abortion was. But there's a lot of people who think abortion is awful."

The slaying quickly brought condemnation from both anti-abortion and abortion-rights groups, as well as President Barack Obama.

"However profound our differences as Americans over difficult issues such as abortion, they cannot be resolved by heinous acts of violence," Obama said in a statement.

Wichita Deputy Police Chief Tom Stolz said Tiller apparently did not have a bodyguard with him in church, although the doctor was routinely accompanied by one. An attorney for Tiller, Dan Monnat, said the doctor's wife, Jeanne, was in the choir at the time of the shooting.

Monnat said in early May that Tiller had asked federal prosecutors to step up investigations of vandalism and other threats against the clinic out of fear that the incidents were increasing and that Tiller's safety was in jeopardy.

The last U.S. killing of an abortion doctor was in October 1998 when Dr. Barnett Slepian was fatally shot in his home in a suburb of Buffalo, New York. A militant abortion opponent was convicted of the murder.

One of Tiller's lawyers and friends, Dan Monnat, told CBS' The Early Show that Tiller had been supported by his wife and children in his decision to continue providing abortion services.

"If Dr. Tiller is not going to service a woman's right to chose, who will do it?" Monnat said.

"Many of those have been terrorized and run off by protesters," he said about other abortion providers.

[ralpherus]

skykk- you are a wack job. We were attacked several times during clinton. And we were attacked in arkansas the other day- the murder pig islamist stone aged freak convert murdering US Soldiers- and the cheap scum traitor media is NOT REPORTING IT> WAY worse than three murdering abortionists got killed!!

[tommynutz]

When a man creates a child, he is legally responsible to pay for the child. Its called child support. And if you dont pay, they dont garnish your wages, they dont freeze your bank, you go to jail on a criminal charge.

[jeanneyess]

Finally, let us consider the politics of the issue of "choice". If the men did have the responsibility over women's choice, we would have to create law wherein a tax for men would be placed to cover the costs of pregnancy, delivery, and living to the age of majority. If each man took care of just one "saved" child, I think there would be many more woomen choosing life, and if the men chose life for them and were willing to support it, ah, then we would have a potential to see an equality here in the sharing of responsibility. While choice remains by law the women's, if the Christian conservatives want to make headway turning pro choice to pro life, then this is the Christian and equal way to approach it, and not just say, no choice for you and take care of it yourself, too.

[jeanneyess]

Next, let us analyze the psychology of the issue. For the most part, our traditional "Christian" Conservatives belong to the paternalistic society under which our government was born, wherein the male of the household owned everything and made all decisions. The fact that the Supreme Court took the legal and ethical right away from the male and put it in the hands of the woman threatens that paternalistic society, which yet continues in many parts of our country with the willing partcipation of the woman letting her choices be made by the man as a part of the knit of that paatchwork of paternalism. These woman not only accept it, but welcome it as a relief to having to take responsibility over their own choices. But men, within that society yet consider it a threat to the entire American society that women are protected in this situation to have a choice which the man cannot override. That is scary for men, threatening their power and control, not only over their own women but all women in our American society, considering it an upheaval of the traditional society.

[jeanneyess]

Let us begin with the Christian concept promoted by Jesus, Let those who are without sin cast the first stone. So here we have a man who not only cast the stone, but shot the man. And the many comments about the doctor from those who, apparently, got messages from Jesus telling them that they were exempt from the "without sin" clause, or they were without sin until they made their unChristian comments.

Now let us look at the facts. Abortion is legal, and was made so by the Supreme Court in the case of Roe v. Wade, so if anyone is responsible for legal abortion it is those judges that passed the law. Roeder was working within the law, and those staging the suppression of his services and the clients rights to those services with unChristian namecalling and scare tactics were testing the limits of the law of public harassment, and for the most part, the sympathetic law was lenient, and turned the other cheek, not in the way Jesus was intending, most certainly.

[tommynutz]

DOWN WITH THE INFANTICIDE MONSTERS

[growlll]

It seems to me that left wing nut whack jobs that gripe about Fox political opinion storys forget what the first admendment is about. Its just left wing opinion thats Ok and all the others are not PC. What a crock on unamerican liberal left wing pinko rot. This seems to me just to be the kettle calling the pot black. Political opinion storys are just that..the right to free speech as the constitution allows. Anyone that belives that CBS or ABC does not do the same but from the left is a total fool or a deluded kook.

[skyk-2009]

Why bring Pres. Bush into this ? He was one of the greatest presidents we've ever had. About 1000% better than the one we've got now. The Iraq war was necessary, but the killing Tiller did, was not . Tiller needed to be stopped, that's all there is to it. Remember this, what is legal, is not always what is right. And something that is illegal is not always wrong. Slavery was legal at the time, but still wrong. Some of the comments I read on here just flat out make me LMAO. Stupid, stupid people !
Posted by luke_4u at 8:48 AM : Jun 2, 2009

Whatever it is you are sniffing??? STOP! Bush took over a nation who had seen EIGHT peaceful years without any attack, had dug themselves out of a VERY large Debt Hole to have a Balanced Budget AND a Surplus. With that Surplus going forward we would have seen our national debt retired in Five Years. Look at the nation Bush handed our new President and tell me just how much FAILURE would have been enough for you people?? LOL Come on!! You CAN'T be serious!!!

[actornaught]

...something that is illegal is not always wrong...
Posted by luke_4u at 8:48 AM : Jun 2, 2009

Don't be surprised when the FBI knocks on your door...

[skyk-2009]

skyk-2009
Thnaks for the list. I love my AT&T U-verse - but will be cancelling it today. It is action time - FOX Noise only respects money (oh, and maybe quasi-Christianity if it means higher ratings).
Posted by nokoolaid-2009 at 8:37 AM : Jun 2, 2009

LOL Well you certainly aren't the only one. I have a friend who works for them and she says they have been swamped with angry citizens.

[luke_4u]

Roeder is a murderer of course, but in doing what he did, he has saved countless lives. Behind every cloud, there's a silver lining. Tiller needed to be stopped, that is clear. Posted by luke_4u

That same argument could be used against President Bush and the thousands of lives lost in Iraq. So by your reasoning, a person would have been justified in taking a shot at him as well? So you are advocating assassination in the name of "the greater good"?
Posted by nokoolaid-2009 at 7:22 AM : Jun 2, 2009

Why bring Pres. Bush into this ? He was one of the greatest presidents we've ever had. About 1000% better than the one we've got now. The Iraq war was necessary, but the killing Tiller did, was not . Tiller needed to be stopped, that's all there is to it. Remember this, what is legal, is not always what is right. And something that is illegal is not always wrong. Slavery was legal at the time, but still wrong. Some of the comments I read on here just flat out make me LMAO. Stupid, stupid people !

[actornaught]

....supress the right to free speech...
Posted by IThoughtItWasFunny at 8:01 AM : Jun 2, 2009

You must be refering to Fox News, since, under the w admin, they were an under-the-table propaganda outlet for the government. Since it's ONLY the government that can't abridge the right to free speech. Corporations, news outlets, etc. in fact have a responsibility to control their content, no such thing as free speech there (try telling your boss he sucks). Or, in FN's case, irresponsibility to shill ad time for idiot-ratings...

[skyk-2009]

Good luck lib. Fox out rates CBS, MSNBC, CNN, ABC, NBC and Public TV combined.
Posted by liberal_fascism at 8:09 AM : Jun 2, 2009

What grade did you actually get through?? ROFLMAO Surely you are smarter than THIS??? Please tell me you are?? There is ONE Radical Right Wing outlet, FOX. There are many Main Stream outlets. Now what does THAT tell you? God are you people THAT ridiculously uneducated??

[skyk-2009]

Oh this is priceless....supress the right to free speech....a communist ideology...

Could justifiable be a radical liberal that doesn't want anybody elses voice heard but the Obama propaganda constantly spewed on every other network?
Posted by IThoughtItWasFunny at 8:01 AM : Jun 2, 2009

Have YOU heard what that man said? I will NEVER buy another product put out by ANY sponsor of that kind of HATE and outright vile toward a Man who was doing his LEGAL Job. This man wasn't a criminal and was doing what he was trained to do... so where does it stop? Please don't tell me you think giving in to these Terrorist will stop this? It will NOT!!

[skyk-2009]

Here is a list of Fox News Sponsors, folks. Please Join the boycott.

http://foxnewsboycott.com/fox-news-sponsors/
Posted by justifiable at 7:59 AM : Jun 2, 2009

Thanks for the info!!

[skyk-2009]

Could justifiable be a radical liberal that doesn't want anybody elses voice heard but the Obama propaganda constantly spewed on every other network?
Posted by IThoughtItWasFunny

What does the VERY Popular President have to do with this? You know it's not to late. You can enroll in Night Course's and then YOU TO can learn, research on your own and actually UNDERSTAND what Terror is all about, who uses and for what reason. I fought the Klan in my day and I'm here to tell you giving in is NOT an option with folks like you so YOU'D better learn to get along with your fellow citizens. Killing them because they refuse to agree with YOUR religious views is NEVER going to work.

[actornaught]

...Fox out rates CBS, MSNBC, CNN, ABC, NBC and Public TV combined.
Posted by liberal_fascism at 8:14 AM : Jun 2, 2009

Source? As if this statement makes any sense...

[freebird1128]

How can anyone
"get what you're saying"? What you are saying makes no sense, and has no basis in truth.
"God murders pregnant woman"?
Those are the rantings of mad man.
Posted by DaVicar5 at 5:21 AM : Jun 2, 2009


Ok, let's take this slow. Makes perfect sense and has basis for truth....according to the bible.
I think the most obvious example would be the great flood. My next quotes/scriptures also include the murders of infants and children which god ordered/condoned.

1 Samuel 15:3 Slay both man and woman, child and suckling
2 Kings 8:12 Dash their children, and rip up their women with child
Hosea 13:16 Infants shall be dashed to pieces, their women with child shall be ripped up
Isaiah 13:16 Their children will be dashed before their eyes
2 Kings 2:23-24 Killing of 42 children by a bear

There are many, many examples in the bible. So, again, my point......Christians are against abortion because they believe god is against abortion. It's murder in their eyes and gods. Some christians feel vindicated when an abortionist is murdered. Eye for an eye right? But when god kills or condones the murder of innocent children and unborn babies it's alright in the christians eyes. What is so difficult to understand?

[babooph]

"Onward Christian soldiers,marching on to .....murder & terrorism ....?"

[luke_4u]

This is a good one for those of you that support the death penalty so strongly. Tiller killed I don't know how many people, and then was executed for it. Using your own arguement, he now won't be able to kill again. Poetic justice, I'd say. Roeder is a murderer of course, but in doing what he did, he has saved countless lives. Behind every cloud, there's a silver lining. Tiller needed to be stopped, that is clear. And now the one that stepped up to the plate will either be executed himself, or spend the rest of his life in prison.