Abortionist and serial killer Kermit Gosnell reportedly dead at 85

Former Philadelphia abortionist and serial killer Kermit Gosnell has reportedly died in prison at the age of 85. Gosnell is survived by his wife, Pearl — who was also imprisoned for aiding her husband in his crimes — and six children.

Key Takeaways:

• In 2010, the FBI raided Gosnell's Philadelphia abortion facility and found it in despicable condition. The FBI found furniture, carpets, and more covered in blood, urine, and feces, with jars containing the feet of aborted babies on display. More aborted babies' bodies were found in the freezer.

• At least two women died at Gosnell's hands, with countless more seriously injured.

• Further investigation found he had murdered multiple abortion survivors; he was ultimately charged with eight deaths: seven babies and one woman, Karnamaya Mongar.

• He was sentenced to life in prison in 2013, and has now reportedly died in prison at the age of 85.

The Details:

In 2018, husband-wife team Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney produced and released a disturbing documentary revealing a decades-long cover up in which authorities looked the other way as complaints and violations piled up against Gosnell.

On March 23, McAleer and McElhinney broke the news of Gosnell's death at the age of 85. His cause of death is not currently known. The couple's sources said Gosnell died earlier this month, but prison officials did not report the death until now.

Detective Jim Wood is the narcotics officer ultimately responsible for exposing Gosnell's crimes; in a statement, he told McAleer and McElhinney, “May God have mercy on his soul, but his soul was filled with evil so there may be no mercy for him, like there was no mercy for the babies.”

In a statement, McElhinney reflected on Gosnell's victims. She said:

"Gosnell is gone, but we should take time to think of the thousands of innocent babies who were his victims. They lived for a short period of time but must not be forgotten. They achieved some measure of justice with Gosnell’s prosecution and incarceration.

I think in particular of Baby Boy A, who was so big that even Gosnell’s workers were shocked by the barbarity of his killing and took a photo of him after he was murdered. He shook their hardened hearts.

Baby Boy A lived for about an hour before he was killed. The picture of him curled up in a tupperware container helped seal Gosnell’s fate and ensured he’d never kill again.

That heartbreaking picture has also meant that I’m not the only one who will never forget Baby Boy A.

I’m also thinking of the two women who needlessly died in Gosnell’s diabolical clinic. Karnamaya Mongar, who came to this country as a refugee after living a life of danger in Bhutan. She came to America for refuge but four months later was dead at the hands of Gosnell.

And Semika Shaw, the young mother who tragically died after a botched abortion at the hands of Kermit Gosnell.

Their deaths were also caused because of bureaucratic incompetence and the liberal political imperative to shield abortion and abortionists from criticism.

These women were sacrificed for politics.

The Backstory:

Health violations at Gosnell's facility dated back as far as 1989, and they continued until 1993, when the state of Pennsylvania stopped inspecting the facility. Yet the atrocities continued.

All the while, officials refused to do anything, even as complaints continued to roll in.

As Live Action News previously reported:

In 1996, the Department of Health was notified that a patient had suffered a perforated uterus at the hands of Dr. Gosnell and had to undergo an emergency hysterectomy. They took no action.

A pediatrician notified the Department of Health that patients of his who had seen Dr. Gosnell were returning with a sexually transmitted disease. They took no action.

In 2001, a former employee informed the Pennsylvania Department of State that the conditions at Gosnell’s clinic were abysmal – including the fact that he permitted flea-infected cats to roam the clinic – and that he was allowing unlicensed workers to give anesthesia to patients. They took no action.

In 2002, the Department of State was notified that Semika Shaw, a 22-year-old woman, had died of sepsis and a perforated uterus in 2000. They took no action.

In 2003, the Philadelphia Health Department received a tip that aborted babies were being stored in paper bags at Gosnell’s clinic. They took no action.

In 2005, an attorney filed a complaint with the Department of State on behalf of his client, who had suffered seizures after Gosnell administered anesthesia which was contraindicated for people on methadone, which she was. She had informed him of this prior to the administration and asked him to stop as she began to seize. The Department of State took no action.

In 2007, the Department of Health received a report of a stillborn, 30-week-old baby girl. The baby was induced in the course of an abortion. Abortions at 30 weeks are illegal. They took no action.

In 2008, and then again in 2009, an employee with the Philadelphia Department of Public Health visited the clinic and informed them of the disgusting conditions there. They took no action.

In 2009, Gosnell notified the Department of Health that Karnamaya Mongar had died at his clinic. There were requests to open an investigation. They took no action.

It was Gosnell's practice of illegal drug trafficking that ultimately brought him down; that caught the FBI's attention, and they raided the facility. While the authorities were there solely for drug violations, that raid brought to light the extent of his crimes.

One individual described the on-site conditions:

There is blood on the floor. A stench of urine fills the air. A flea-infested cat wanders through the facility, and there is cat feces on the stairs. Semi-conscious women scheduled for abortions are moaning in the waiting room or the recovery room, where they sit on dirty recliners covered with blood-stained blankets. A row of jars contains the severed feet of fetuses.

The corpses of dozens more of Gosnell's victims were found in the freezer, and had seemingly been frozen for decades.

Ultimately, Gosnell was convicted of the murder of three infants, though it is believed he killed many more. His method of killing them was what he called "snipping," meaning after the infants were born alive, he used scissors to snip their spines.

Commentary:

In response to the news of Gosnell's death, Illinois Right to Life issued a press release noting that what happened in Pennsylvania due to a lack of oversight can easily happen elsewhere (emphases added):

As the Grand Jury in his criminal trial – where he was convicted of murdering a pregnant woman and three viable babies born alive – reported, the National Abortion Federation inspected his clinic and found multiple health and safety violations. The Grand Jury noted:

"We have to question why an evaluator from NAF, whose stated mission is to ensure safe, legal, and acceptable abortion care, and to promote health and justice for women, did not report Gosnell to authorities."

Because Illinois does not regularly inspect the State's many abortion clinics, women who travel here for abortions, or who live here, are at risk for substandard care...

We are calling upon Governor Pritzker to put the health and safety of women FIRST, and to reinstate regular, intentional, and thorough inspection of Illinois' abortion clinics.

It took the death of a woman in Gosnell's clinic for law enforcement to act. Please, Governor Pritzker, don't sacrifice pregnant women on the altar of choice.

The Bottom Line:

While Kermit Gosnell was convicted of just the three murders, previous employees said his brutal and barbaric murders were regular practice at the facility, and that at least 100 babies were victims of infanticide at his hands.

Pro-life advocates believe the real number across the decades could total into the thousands.