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Investigative·By Carole Novielli
Undercover video allegedly shows abortion fund secretly transporting minor
Undercover footage from the pro-life group Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust allegedly shows a "multi-state abortion fund, the Palmetto State Abortion Fund, (PSAF) secretly transporting a minor for an abortion, two hours away, despite the parent’s clear disapproval."
A media release sent to Live Action News from Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust read in part:
Survivors’ undercover journalist posed as a 15-year-old and captured interactions with PSAF’s founder, staff, and a volunteer driver[,] Kathryn Weir. Via a hidden camera, she captured the entire operation from being picked up at the Myrtle Beach Mall and being driven to Planned Parenthood in Charleston.
On the return trip, the vehicle stopped at a gas station where they were intercepted by Survivors’ Director Tim Clement. He posed as the teen’s distressed father, demanding to know who Weir was and why she had taken his “daughter” to an abortion clinic.
In the footage Clement can be heard asking, “This is my daughter, what are you doing with her? Why were you taking her to Planned Parenthood?” to which Weir, visibly surprised, responded[,] “I was just giving her a ride.”
... Survivors allege this is part of a wider pattern with Palmetto State Abortion Fund: aiding minors without parental consent, pushing mail-order abortion pills to teens, and giving instructions to hide the procedures. With multiple professors on the abortion fund’s board of directors tied to Coastal Carolina University, Survivors raise concerns about the organization’s influence reaching into educational institutions.
In the edited 11-minute video footage, Jessica Newell, a team lead for Survivors’ South Carolina, alleges that their undercover journalist who posed as a 15-year-old seeking abortion was picked up by a Palmetto State Abortion Fund (PSAF) volunteer who then drove the "teen" two hours from Myrtle Beach to a Charleston Planned Parenthood. The full video can be found here.
The footage shows alleged text messages between the "teen" and someone at PSAF, who identified the driver as "Katie." The messages appear to have been exchanged between October 30 and November 3.
Live Action News has not independently verified that the text messages were from PSAF, although a phone number exposed in the messages matches one seen on the PSAF website.
On November 4, the "teen" was picked up by "Katie," identified by Survivors as 38-year-old Kathryn Weir. In the video, the "teen" tells "Katie" she is just 15 and that her parents "think I'm doing homeschool with my friend Ashley right now."
A conversation about murder ironically ensues:
Undercover journalist: "What kind of shows do you like?"
Driver (alleged to be Weir): "I'm true crimes obsessed. I like 'My Favorite Murder' - I like murder. I have never murdered anyone. I like listening to stories about murder. Sorry, have I scared you?"
Undercover journalist: "No."
While Live Action News cannot verify that "Katie" was specifically volunteering for PSAF on the date in question, it has confirmed that a "Katie Rose Weir" has been associated with PSAF, according to the group's Facebook page. Weir also shared a PSAF fundraising post on her personal Facebook page in early November.
The undercover footage shows the "teen" arriving at Planned Parenthood (historically known for covering up the sexual abuse of minors), where she is greeted by escorts who buzz her in. However, she is ultimately turned away because of the inability to pay for the abortion.
Audio recorded between the "teen" and the alleged Planned Parenthood counselor is shown below:
PP Counselor: How old are you?
Undercover journalist: 15
PP Counselor: As long as you are under 12 weeks and 6 days [pregnant], we can schedule you. So you may not be able to be seen in South Carolina, but you may be able to go to North Carolina. So you said someone brought you from the abortion fund?
Undercover journalist: Yeah, we had to drive two hours to get here.
PP Counselor: Did the person that brought you — she knows your age, right?
Undercover journalist: Yeah.
The video also allegedly shows the driver, presumed to be Weir, telling the "minor" that PSAF will pay the $194 for her abortion at a future appointment. The driver and "teen" are shown talking in the car as they drive back to Myrtle Beach, where they stop at a gas station for water. At the gas station, the driver is then confronted by another actor posing as the father of the "teen."
When asked who she is and why she was driving the "teen" the driver, alleged to be Weir, denies knowing the "teen," claiming the "teen" simply asked her "for a ride."
"Abortion trafficking" involves the unauthorized transport of a minor for the purpose of abortion in or across state lines by an adult who does not have her parents' knowledge or consent. The adult transporting the child is often unknown to the minor or her parents, but that is not always the case.
Live Action News has previously documented multiple instances of abortion funding organizations enticing teens to travel out of state, offering them transportation and financial support. It has also reported on the complicity of abortion businesses like Planned Parenthood, which repeatedly fail to report suspected child sexual abuse as required by law.
Planned Parenthood staffers in Missouri were caught by Project Vertias discussing how they take minors across state lines "every day" for abortions without their parents' knowledge, and that they "never tell."
Abortion funding groups are "grassroots organizations" that seek to raise funds to pay for abortions and any abortion-related expenses, including travel. Many belong to the National Network of Abortion Funds (NNAF), which boasts of having "nearly 100 abortion funds."
While not listed as associated with NNAF, PSAF's website states:
Founded in December of 2021, Palmetto State Abortion Fund was formed to provide financial, emotional, and logistical support to all South Carolinians seeking abortion services. In addition to South Carolina, we now serve abortion seekers in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. Palmetto State Abortion Fund is dedicated to removing all barriers that may prevent or restrict abortion access.
PSAF is not operated by licensed counselors or social workers, but mostly by volunteers.
According to Post and Courier:
The group has no office and operates remotely through phones and an app. Since its inception in 2021, the fund has helped more than 2,000 women receive the procedure, working with over 20 clinics and providing funding that ranges from hundreds to thousands of dollars...
... Most women travel out of state for abortions, usually to North Carolina or Virginia, PSAF board members said. Some prefer Virginia...
... In 2024, PSAF funded 1,022 abortions across seven states, spending $312,859. That's up from 390 procedures in 2023 and 200 in 2021. Donations come from across the U.S., especially Chicago, California, New York and Atlanta.
The group's latest 990 report shows Deidre Griffin as president and Ashlyn Preaux as vice-president and director, and they are assumed to be the co-founders.
Carey Shofner is listed as Board President of PSAF. Other directors include Wayne Borders, Talisa Effinge, Victoria Edwards, Brianna Martin, Curt Shumate, Nick Rubin, and Ina Seethaler (director of college outreach), who also serves as Professor/Coordinator, Women's & Gender Studies at Coastal Carolina University (CCU).
Post and Courier added:
Palmetto State Abortion Fund is 100 percent volunteer-run. The eight board members including Borders, Preaux and Marcurius Byrd balance this work with other jobs. They partner with but are separate from Planned Parenthood and other clinics. They also provide free contraceptives and post-abortion care kits.
PSAF has plans to add paid staff members. A May 5th Facebook post from the group read:
We have some exciting news! We are taking steps to move from an all volunteer fund to a paid staff fund. This transition will take place over the next two years. We’re so grateful to have a committed donor covering $48,000 per year to fund our first staff role
BUT to fully support the position and make it sustainable, we need to close the gap with an additional $12,000.If you’re interested in discussing the possibility of ensuring PSAF is around for years to come — please reach out.
Past donors to PSAF include foundations such as the Anderson-Rogers Foundation, Lucey Charitable Foundation, Commonwealth Fund, and The Amj Foundation.
Survivors alleges, "Palmetto State Abortion Fund" is "part of a wider pattern" of these funds "aid[ing] minors without parental consent, pushing mail-order abortion pills to teens, and giving instructions to hide the procedures."
Tim Clement, Outreach Director for Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust, told Live Action News the organization is exposing PSAF's actions to "bring awareness to parents that this is happening to their children."
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
Investigative·By Carole Novielli
Undercover video allegedly shows abortion fund secretly transporting minor
Undercover footage from the pro-life group Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust allegedly shows a "multi-state abortion fund, the Palmetto State Abortion Fund, (PSAF) secretly transporting a minor for an abortion, two hours away, despite the parent’s clear disapproval."
A media release sent to Live Action News from Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust read in part:
Survivors’ undercover journalist posed as a 15-year-old and captured interactions with PSAF’s founder, staff, and a volunteer driver[,] Kathryn Weir. Via a hidden camera, she captured the entire operation from being picked up at the Myrtle Beach Mall and being driven to Planned Parenthood in Charleston.
On the return trip, the vehicle stopped at a gas station where they were intercepted by Survivors’ Director Tim Clement. He posed as the teen’s distressed father, demanding to know who Weir was and why she had taken his “daughter” to an abortion clinic.
In the footage Clement can be heard asking, “This is my daughter, what are you doing with her? Why were you taking her to Planned Parenthood?” to which Weir, visibly surprised, responded[,] “I was just giving her a ride.”
... Survivors allege this is part of a wider pattern with Palmetto State Abortion Fund: aiding minors without parental consent, pushing mail-order abortion pills to teens, and giving instructions to hide the procedures. With multiple professors on the abortion fund’s board of directors tied to Coastal Carolina University, Survivors raise concerns about the organization’s influence reaching into educational institutions.
In the edited 11-minute video footage, Jessica Newell, a team lead for Survivors’ South Carolina, alleges that their undercover journalist who posed as a 15-year-old seeking abortion was picked up by a Palmetto State Abortion Fund (PSAF) volunteer who then drove the "teen" two hours from Myrtle Beach to a Charleston Planned Parenthood. The full video can be found here.
The footage shows alleged text messages between the "teen" and someone at PSAF, who identified the driver as "Katie." The messages appear to have been exchanged between October 30 and November 3.
Live Action News has not independently verified that the text messages were from PSAF, although a phone number exposed in the messages matches one seen on the PSAF website.
On November 4, the "teen" was picked up by "Katie," identified by Survivors as 38-year-old Kathryn Weir. In the video, the "teen" tells "Katie" she is just 15 and that her parents "think I'm doing homeschool with my friend Ashley right now."
A conversation about murder ironically ensues:
Undercover journalist: "What kind of shows do you like?"
Driver (alleged to be Weir): "I'm true crimes obsessed. I like 'My Favorite Murder' - I like murder. I have never murdered anyone. I like listening to stories about murder. Sorry, have I scared you?"
Undercover journalist: "No."
While Live Action News cannot verify that "Katie" was specifically volunteering for PSAF on the date in question, it has confirmed that a "Katie Rose Weir" has been associated with PSAF, according to the group's Facebook page. Weir also shared a PSAF fundraising post on her personal Facebook page in early November.
The undercover footage shows the "teen" arriving at Planned Parenthood (historically known for covering up the sexual abuse of minors), where she is greeted by escorts who buzz her in. However, she is ultimately turned away because of the inability to pay for the abortion.
Audio recorded between the "teen" and the alleged Planned Parenthood counselor is shown below:
PP Counselor: How old are you?
Undercover journalist: 15
PP Counselor: As long as you are under 12 weeks and 6 days [pregnant], we can schedule you. So you may not be able to be seen in South Carolina, but you may be able to go to North Carolina. So you said someone brought you from the abortion fund?
Undercover journalist: Yeah, we had to drive two hours to get here.
PP Counselor: Did the person that brought you — she knows your age, right?
Undercover journalist: Yeah.
The video also allegedly shows the driver, presumed to be Weir, telling the "minor" that PSAF will pay the $194 for her abortion at a future appointment. The driver and "teen" are shown talking in the car as they drive back to Myrtle Beach, where they stop at a gas station for water. At the gas station, the driver is then confronted by another actor posing as the father of the "teen."
When asked who she is and why she was driving the "teen" the driver, alleged to be Weir, denies knowing the "teen," claiming the "teen" simply asked her "for a ride."
"Abortion trafficking" involves the unauthorized transport of a minor for the purpose of abortion in or across state lines by an adult who does not have her parents' knowledge or consent. The adult transporting the child is often unknown to the minor or her parents, but that is not always the case.
Live Action News has previously documented multiple instances of abortion funding organizations enticing teens to travel out of state, offering them transportation and financial support. It has also reported on the complicity of abortion businesses like Planned Parenthood, which repeatedly fail to report suspected child sexual abuse as required by law.
Planned Parenthood staffers in Missouri were caught by Project Vertias discussing how they take minors across state lines "every day" for abortions without their parents' knowledge, and that they "never tell."
Abortion funding groups are "grassroots organizations" that seek to raise funds to pay for abortions and any abortion-related expenses, including travel. Many belong to the National Network of Abortion Funds (NNAF), which boasts of having "nearly 100 abortion funds."
While not listed as associated with NNAF, PSAF's website states:
Founded in December of 2021, Palmetto State Abortion Fund was formed to provide financial, emotional, and logistical support to all South Carolinians seeking abortion services. In addition to South Carolina, we now serve abortion seekers in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. Palmetto State Abortion Fund is dedicated to removing all barriers that may prevent or restrict abortion access.
PSAF is not operated by licensed counselors or social workers, but mostly by volunteers.
According to Post and Courier:
The group has no office and operates remotely through phones and an app. Since its inception in 2021, the fund has helped more than 2,000 women receive the procedure, working with over 20 clinics and providing funding that ranges from hundreds to thousands of dollars...
... Most women travel out of state for abortions, usually to North Carolina or Virginia, PSAF board members said. Some prefer Virginia...
... In 2024, PSAF funded 1,022 abortions across seven states, spending $312,859. That's up from 390 procedures in 2023 and 200 in 2021. Donations come from across the U.S., especially Chicago, California, New York and Atlanta.
The group's latest 990 report shows Deidre Griffin as president and Ashlyn Preaux as vice-president and director, and they are assumed to be the co-founders.
Carey Shofner is listed as Board President of PSAF. Other directors include Wayne Borders, Talisa Effinge, Victoria Edwards, Brianna Martin, Curt Shumate, Nick Rubin, and Ina Seethaler (director of college outreach), who also serves as Professor/Coordinator, Women's & Gender Studies at Coastal Carolina University (CCU).
Post and Courier added:
Palmetto State Abortion Fund is 100 percent volunteer-run. The eight board members including Borders, Preaux and Marcurius Byrd balance this work with other jobs. They partner with but are separate from Planned Parenthood and other clinics. They also provide free contraceptives and post-abortion care kits.
PSAF has plans to add paid staff members. A May 5th Facebook post from the group read:
We have some exciting news! We are taking steps to move from an all volunteer fund to a paid staff fund. This transition will take place over the next two years. We’re so grateful to have a committed donor covering $48,000 per year to fund our first staff role
BUT to fully support the position and make it sustainable, we need to close the gap with an additional $12,000.If you’re interested in discussing the possibility of ensuring PSAF is around for years to come — please reach out.
Past donors to PSAF include foundations such as the Anderson-Rogers Foundation, Lucey Charitable Foundation, Commonwealth Fund, and The Amj Foundation.
Survivors alleges, "Palmetto State Abortion Fund" is "part of a wider pattern" of these funds "aid[ing] minors without parental consent, pushing mail-order abortion pills to teens, and giving instructions to hide the procedures."
Tim Clement, Outreach Director for Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust, told Live Action News the organization is exposing PSAF's actions to "bring awareness to parents that this is happening to their children."
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
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·We have a minor patient who needs additional help and is currently in clinic waiting to be seen. Her gap is $3,400. donorbox.org/support-the-fu…
We have a minor patient who needs additional help and is currently in clinic waiting to be seen. Her gap is $3,400. donorbox.org/support-the-fu…
South Carolina politicians passed a 6-week ban. So now we’re spending hundreds—sometimes thousands—helping folks travel to other states for care. We won’t stop. But we need you. Donate today: DonorBox.org/support-the-fu… #FundAbortion #AbortionRights
South Carolina politicians passed a 6-week ban. So now we’re spending hundreds—sometimes thousands—helping folks travel to other states for care. We won’t stop. But we need you. Donate today: DonorBox.org/support-the-fu… #FundAbortion #AbortionRights
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·The Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust have released explosive undercover footage showing a multi-state abortion fund, the Palmetto State Abortion Fund, (PSAF) secretly transporting a minor for an abortion, two hours away, despite the parent's clear disapproval. This video Show more
The Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust have released explosive undercover footage showing a multi-state abortion fund, the Palmetto State Abortion Fund, (PSAF) secretly transporting a minor for an abortion, two hours away, despite the parent's clear disapproval. This video Show more
