For Lynne Slepian, tougher law ‘extremely important’
Widow of doctor lauds state stance on violence
Lynne Slepian picks her public appearances carefully — and sparingly — since she was thrown into the public eye after the slaying of her husband, Dr. Barnett A. Slepian, by an anti-abortion activist with a rifle in October 1998.
But she did not hesitate to attend Thursday’s news conference trumpeting the enactment of a law toughening state penalties for violence committed against reproductive health care workers.
“It’s extremely important,” she said of the new law after the news conference. “This is the crux of the whole issue. It’s going to set a precedent for the whole country, we hope. The issue [of clinic violence] is not going to go away. The issue will never go away. Hopefully, strong penalties will decrease the violence.”
A day earlier, Gov. David A. Paterson had signed into law the Protections for Reproductive Health Care Act, which increases the penalties for assaults carried out against such workers. The new law also covers violence against volunteers at the clinics.
“This law sends a very, very strong message that New York State is taking a leadership role against the harassment and violence against reproductive health care workers,” said Assemblyman Sam Hoyt, sponsor of the Assembly version.
New York now can boast the strongest laws in the nation protecting the safety of those workers, the Buffalo Democrat added.
The main provisions of the new law include:
• Causing physical injury to someone at a reproductive health clinic rises from a misdemeanor to a new Class E felony that can lead to a sentence of up to seven years in prison.
• Causing serious physical injury becomes a Class C felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
• Repeat offenders can face more serious charges and longer sentences than they now do.
• Volunteers are explicitly covered under the new law, in addition to people providing or obtaining reproductive health care.
The bill’s quick bipartisan passage by large measures in both the Assembly and the State Senate proves that clinic violence has no place in New York, said Karen J. Nelson, chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood of Western New York.
Lynne Slepian has made few public appearances in the 11 years since her husband, an abortion provider, was gunned down in their Amherst home by a sniper James C. Kopp, firing from a wooded area behind the house.
“I’m afraid I’m going to say something that I wouldn’t like to hear played back later,” said Slepian, who has been known to utter blunt comments about clinic violence. She also told reporters that she has been reluctant to put her four sons in the spotlight, especially when they were younger.
But she wanted to add her voice to those praising the new law pushed by Hoyt after the May 31 killing of another abortion provider, Dr. George R. Tiller, in a Kansas church.
Slepian believes that the message won’t be lost on anyone considering violence at abortion clinics.
“I think the word will travel very quickly,” she said.
Slepian also reflected on the battle for tougher measures since her husband’s death.
“It’s been 11 years, a long 11 years,” she said, “and there really hasn’t been that much progress in those 11 years.”
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