Three delays
Well, just because it’s the weekend doesn’t mean the news stops.
First, Eric Scheidler’s delayed appearance from last week’s Fox News Live will be TODAY, in less than an hour. It can come any time after 11a CST but is expected about 11:20a CST.
Next, the pro-life libel suit against Planned Parenthood has been delayed, I hear, because additional plaintiffs are continually being added. Look for that to be filed early next week.
Finally, here’s the report of another sort of delay from the Aurora Beacon, today:
Kane County State’s Attorney John Barsanti will wait until next week to issue his much-anticipated decision on whether officials from Planned Parenthood broke the law in applying to build a women’s health center in Aurora….
Barsanti has been reviewing Planned Parenthood/Gemini Office Development’s application, permitting and approval process for possible criminal fraud after anti-abortion activists raised concerns a couple of weeks ago. The state’s attorney’s office had been expected to release its report on Friday, but officials said the release has been put off to next week, noting “Monday is still viable.”…
Read entire story on page 2. This will likely make Chicago PP that much more antsy to file their second promised motion for an emergency injunction.
Aurora Beacon
Barsanti’s report on Planned Parenthood delayed
September 29, 2007
By Kristen Zambo Staff Writer
AURORA — Kane County State’s Attorney John Barsanti will wait until next week to issue his much-anticipated decision on whether officials from Planned Parenthood broke the law in applying to build a women’s health center in Aurora.
Planned Parenthood/Chicago Area officials want to open a $7.5 million full-service health center at East New York Street and Oakhurst Drive in the DuPage County section of Aurora.
Abortion services, which Planned Parenthood officials say will account for about 10 percent of the care to be provided there, would be available at the clinic.
Tuesday gatherings
Barsanti has been reviewing Planned Parenthood/Gemini Office Development’s application, permitting and approval process for possible criminal fraud after anti-abortion activists raised concerns a couple of weeks ago. The state’s attorney’s office had been expected to release its report on Friday, but officials said the release has been put off to next week, noting “Monday is still viable.”
“I spoke with his (Barsanti’s) office this morning and it should be released sometime early next week,” Carie Anne Ergo, the city’s public information officer, said Friday. “We definitely do want to release everything within a pretty close time period.”
Barsanti’s investigation also includes reviews of two investigations undertaken by two private lawyers on behalf of the city. These reports, by Richard Martens and Phillip Luetkehans, haven’t been reviewed yet by city staff or attorneys, and that may take at least a day.
Planned Parenthood had hoped to open the health center on Sept. 18, but the clinic’s temporary occupancy permit expired Sept. 17 and it cannot open until after the investigation is completed.
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
Are Aurora’s mayor, councilmen, committeemen, attorneys, employees, and other staff only allowed to interpret and enforce ordinances and contracts under the pain of having to prove that the other party was criminally fraudulent? That seems to be what the Beacon is reporting. Planned Parenthood seems to enjoy not having to be truthful with the city, that being just a wee bit or moderately untruthful or just shy of criminally fraudulent is OK. Under this scenario it appears that in order for Planned Parenthood to be denied occupancy, they must be shown to have been fully criminally fraudulent.
How did we get here from where we started last month? The instructions to Mr. Martens appeared to be limited to whether the documents in question were as had been reported–deceptive and fraudulent–and to report to the Mayor any other pertinent information he might have uncovered in the process of his review. Indeed, neither Mr. Martens nor Mr. Leutkehans were charged with trying to discern criminal wrongdoing. That being the original scope of the investigation suggests that if they found false information was given to the city then the city, rightfully so, could deny permanent occupancy based upon those findings.
That Mr. Martens and Mr. Leutkehans turned over their findings to the state’s attorney can mean either they uncovered some possibility of criminal wrongdoing or that city officials knew the negatively affected party would be dissatisfied so they handed the ball to Mr. Barsanti. In other words, did the city see this as too hot for them to handle? Are the powers that be at the city looking to dodge their responsibility to interpret and enforce the zoning laws fairly and uniformly?
Another question is how thorough could Mr. Barsanti’s investigation have been given the time constraints. Does brevity suggest he did not find a smoking gun or does it mean he has seen enough to announce that he will proceed with an investigation into possible criminal fraud? For the latter to occur, wouldn’t that normally take longer?
If he has not found a smoking gun and the city cites that alone as a justification for granting permanent occupancy, even though “obfuscation” (Judge Norgle) was utilized to pull the wool over city officials’ eyes, and even though our right to be heard at a timely juncture was circumnavigated by Planned Parenthood’s deception, then where does that leave us?
And finally, if despite the deceptions committed, Planned Parenthood is granted occupancy, what about all of the others in the past who have been dealt with severely by the city for equal or lesser things than Planned Parenthood? Isn’t the city opening themselves up to endless litigation and all sorts of legal action against them?
In the final analysis, wouldn’t it be wiser for the city to deny permanent occupancy and make Planned Parenthood prove that they did not deceive? After all, the Federal District Court has already said Planned Parenthood engaged in “obfuscation”. It would seem that the same standard used to conclude there was “obfuscation” would be used to determine misrepresentation and fraud. The city would be standing on solid legal ground to deny final occupancy.
I am not taking this out of context. Out of the blue Somg said,
“Abortion is the justifiable homicide of a non-innocent person.”
Posted by: SoMG at September 29, 2007 10:27 AM
You read that right, “homicide” “person”
A plausible reason for this delay could stem from the legal “bombshell” dropped last week (zoning ordinance). Consider this; if Mr. Martens or Mr. Leutkehans hadn’t considered the zoning ordinance and special use permit issue brought to light last week, we could expect that this delay was necessary to allow for Kane County State’s Attorney John Barsanti, the opportunity to conduct his own investigation of the Aurora’s zoning laws, instead of solely relying on the research conducted by the City’s hired investigators. I believe this is a very plausible explanation. It will be interesting to see if either of two investigators did in fact find the violation with respect to the zoning ordinance in their research and opinions.
Charles, I had the same thought on the reason for the delay. Excellent point on how interesting it will be to see whether the two investigators found what pro-life attorneys found.
Jerry, your observations were also excellent.
Is this Kristen Zembo chick married to an abortionist?
Planned Parenthood/Chicago Area officials want to open a $7.5 million full-service health center
They don’t offer flu shots, asthma inhalers, or even ice packs for sprains. They won’t treat your diarrhea, insomnia, migraines, or ingrown toenails. They are not a full service health center.
I wish this woman would get her head out of her ass, to be blunt. If she was any more biased, she’d get stitched up into one of those swirly skirts that were so popular in the 1970s.
Great point, Christina. Hadn’t noticed that.
Jill, I have sent both her and her editor THREE letters already calling her on that, and pointing her directly to PP’s web site listing their intended services. As I’ve said before, they’re no more a “full service health center” than Jiffy Lube is a full-service mechanic. She is free to think PP is the best thing to happen to Aurora since they got water and sewer put in. But her praises for the organizaiton belong on the editorial pages, not in her articles. And she needs to get her facts straight.
If Kristen Zembo told me the sky was blue, I’d go outside and check.
Christina,
Excellent points. I love your wit.
Thanks for writing to Zembo for all of us.
Jerry and Charles, et. al.,
I think Eric Scheidler said a week or two ago that Weisner probably asked Barsanti to determine if PP/Gemini had committed any criminal violations so that when he (Barsanti) would report in the negative, Weisner would have the green light to issue the permanent occupancy permit.
I don’t understand exactly how lying on applications is *not* criminal. Is there a distinction to be made here?
But lets also hope that Barsanti reviews the ordinances on the Special Use Permit.
Going by what expert attorney Vince Tessitore has written in his well-documented and researched memos on all the permits and relevant ordinances and facts, it seems obvious to me that PP/Gemini did not follow the laws of the city.
I pray and hope that the residents of Aurora do not sit by and let these manipulators have their way. (By that I mean Weisner and his cronies.)
Here is a prophetic short video talk by the well-known speaker,
Fr. John Corapi: 9-11, Six Years Later…The Approach of Midnight
http://tinyurl.com/37xruu
It’s
been a very long weekend here but, I think I have found something of interest.
In Aurora’s current Zoning Ordinances (AZO), dated Dec 4, 2006, there is a
provision which describes the issuance of permits. Now the City would like us
all to believe that this portion of land is in a Planned Development District
and this ordinance does not apply. The pro-life attorneys have sent memos clearly
indicating that this is not the case. So, looking at the current AZO, for the property
in question, we find the “teeth” in the ordinance.
SECTION
3. SPECIFIC REGULATIONS
3.2. Rules.
3.2-6.
Permits.
3.2-6.1. No application
for a building permit or other permit or license, or for a certificate of
occupancy, shall be approved by the zoning administrator, and no permit or
license shall be issued by any other city department, which would authorize
the use or change in use of any land or building contrary to the provisions of
this ordinance, or the erection, moving, alteration, enlargement or occupancy
of any building designed or intended to be used for a purpose or in a manner
contrary to the provisions of this ordinance.
Simply
put, if the City cannot find a legal reason to dismiss the pro-life attorney’s zoning
argument, no one from the city, not the Mayor, the City’s Corporate Counsel,
not a vote from the Aldermen, cannot lawfully issue PP a permit for this building
– even if they wanted too.
When I first saw the pictures, I thought of the immortal Ned Beatty.