Pro-abortion extremist faces 4 years in prison for threats; found with cyanide
UPDATE 9:50a: Douglas Johnson, Legislative Director of National Right to Life, adds this thought:
Theodore Shulman entered a guilty plea in a federal court in Manhattan yesterday. But the only press coverage seen, so far, is a short story in the New York Daily News, and an even shorter Associated Press piece.
Neither the Daily News nor the AP mentioned that Shulman is the son of famed feminist author and activist Alix Kates Shulman, whose works include Memoirs of an Ex-Prom Queen. I think that if a pro-life activist had entered a guilty plea to making death threats against prominent pro-abortion leaders, that story would be covered much more widely – and if the offender also were the son of a famous pro-life author and activist, that association would be highlighted. Maybe the “mainstream media” should also enter a guilty plea – guilty to bias by grossly selective perception regarding what constitutes “news.”
I should also highlight the fact that Alix has spoken of aborting four of Shulman’s siblings, “and not one was the result of carelessness.” Theodore has commented on those abortions, saying two came before him and two after. Shulman has one living sister, Polly. One doesn’t have to be a psychiatrist to figure out why Shulman is messed up. He needs our prayers.
6a: From the New York Daily News, last night:
A pro-abortion extremist pleaded guilty in Manhattan Federal Court Thursday to posting an online comment threatening violence against two abortion foes.
Theodore Shulman, 51, faces up to 51 months in prison at his sentencing date on Sept. 12. He has been held without bail since his arrest in February 2011.
Shulman made the threat in January 2010 on the website of a conservative Catholic magazine.
The threat targets Priests For Life director the Rev. Frank Pavone and Princeton University professor Robert George and said they would be killed if the accused killer of Wichita abortion provider Dr. George Tiller was acquitted.
Anti-abortion activist Scott Roeder was convicted of the killing the same month Shulman made his threat.
“Mr. Shulman is in my prayers and I extend to him my personal forgiveness,” said Pavone who is identified as Victim-2 in the indictment.
The plea deal includes an agreement that prosecutors would not charge Shulman for possession of cyanide and two other deadly substances at the time of his arrest.
Shulman was a regular commenter on this blog under the moniker “SOMG,” among others. He also made several threats against Bryan Kemper, Gerard Nadal, Troy Newman, Lila Rose, Ken Scott, Cheryl Sullenger, myself and my pastor/church, which at one point required FBI protection. The Associated Press reports Shulman also faces a maximum fine of $250,000.
[HT: Moderator Carder; photos via New York Daily News]
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.
Wow.
I remember SOMG quite well.
I will pray for him too.
I’m so glad to hear that this creep is going to prison, where he belongs. Stay safe, Jill!
“’Mr. Shulman is in my prayers and I extend to him my personal forgiveness,’ said Pavone.”
Pro-lifers are so much more dignified than their opponents.
Praying for SOMG – he truly needs Jesus Christ and the love of God.
Didn’t he post as “Operation Counterstrike” as well? Mostly on RealChoice, but I swear he did that here sometimes, too.
I’m sure we all rememeber SOMG quite well.
Just hearing his name brings back creepy memories and sends chills down my spine.
Alice: yes, he did… and he also stole the name of a real doctor, and masqueraded under that, for some time (on this site, about a year ago or so?)…
Yup, he was Operation Counterstrike, Alice. He had several other monikers as well…
Hmmm..I’ve been coming to Jill’s blog for about 2 years (approximately), but I don’t remember anyone by either of those names. Must have been right before I came (?)
So, there’s been people on this blog worse than our current trolls? :)
yes, JDC there have been worse trolls here. I remember SOMG’s creepy, threatening post here and remember telling Jill I was praying for her protection. I still continue to pray for Jill, mods and other pro-life warriors on the frontline. God help this man.
Yeah, SoMG was a few years back, Pamela. Believe me, you would remember him. Not your typical run-of-the-mill pro-choicer.
The truth is though that he was brilliant. It is in some ways really sad thinking about the extremely high level of intellectual discourse that we would often engage in with him compared to some of the mindless pro-choice comments we have been seeing lately. Of course, on teh other hand it is also nice that we aren’t being threatened by the current pro-choicers…
Perhaps he’ll get the help and healing he needs.
@Pamela: IIRC, shortly before this guy was arrested, there was a troll who spouted lots of Operation Counterstrike talking points, and whose name linked to that (now defunct) blog, going by the name of Theodore. I suppose that could have been a copycat or I could be imagining all this, but after Shulman’s arrest, that troll never posted again. And there’s no reason to believe that wasn’t him. Do you remember him at all?
(…Am I imagining all this?)
I pray that he finds Christ while in prison. Maybe he could also receive psychological or psychiatric care as well…sounds like he was messed up.
Wow. I forgot about SOMG. Well when you know that Mommy who is supposed to be the agent of life, has killed 4 of your siblings and isn’t sorry about it…that would mess with anyone’s head.
I do remember “Anne” who came on for a few months, and was always saying she just “knew” someone from this blog was going to do something violent. She seemed to leave as suddenly as she came. Guess she was disappointed that none of us was the “nutjob” she WANTED us to be.
This was long after the REAL nutjob (Shulman) made his threats, though.
I agree, Bobby. It’s a shame someone with a brilliant mind lets it “go to waste” so to speak.
But wait. We are the “violent” ones right??
SoMG and I actually got along rather well. I appreciated his honesty. At least he fully embraced the depravity of his position, instead of trying to perfume a corpse like our current crop of abortion supporters. Someone who openly admits the basic facts of the issue gets a lot more respect from me than those who try to dance artfully around them and wax philosophical with endless navel-gazing.
There’s been a recent member of the troll species named Alix. Did she pick her moniker in tribute to this Alix? It’s a new name or spelling to me.
Hans, Alix Shulman is not really a widely-known, relevant figure. As an Alex who frequently gets mis-spelled as Alix, myself, I think the name is not all that uncommon and it’s almost undoubtedly just a coincidence.
Alexandra,
Hmm. I guess it’s like a Kevin or Kevan deal, then. My name doesn’t get misspelled, but it is pretty unique in that there are five or six ways to pronounce it!
That’s funny, Hans! I always think of both Hans and Johnson as being pretty straightforward pronunciations. I get like a thousand mis-spellings. Alixandra, Alexandria; when quoted in newspapers they often make me male and go with Alexander. Even my union seems to have two files for me, despite my repeated attempts to correct this – Alexandra and Alexander. Hm. Then as far as nicknames go I get Alix, and Alexa, and Alice. And of course since I do also go by Ally I get Ali, Allie, Alley, Sally, Haley, etc. And of course some people choose their own nicknames – Lexi, Sandra, etc. I accept, and answer to, all of them, lol. Just easier that way.
To make matters even more fun, my last name is a slight variation on an otherwise exceptionally common male first name. I specifically spell that for people, and when giving out my e-mail address I even write in parentheses after the fact that they should note the slightly different spelling; and people still mess it up. Oh well.
I’ve seen some tv characters go from Alexander to Xander or Zander. Since Hans is derived from John, an accurate alias for me could be John Hanson!
General public: Hahns. Less common: Hanz. My siblings: Hants. My parents: Hunts. A cousin when very young: Hunz. Probably one or two others, plus my uncle called me: Hasse, meaning “little Hans.”
Now, aren’t we sorry we veered off into this direction? :)
Looks like Akismet isn’t working quiiiite 100%. ;-)
Whew! I thought perhaps Skynet was about to make its move.
xalisae,
I would have to agree with what you wrote about SoMG. He did not hide behind slogans or catchy phrases or pretend away a living human being. lalalalalala it’s just a blob….
He knew exactly what abortion does to an innocent preborn and he was fine with that.
I find that brutal honesty refreshing, yet grisly.
He owned what he supported and promoted.
Ahhhhh…so we’ve come full circle…As the World Turns.
Yes, xalisae, he was honest about his psychopathy. For what that’s worth. He actually did a lot of good by not hiding it. Showed abortion for what it really is. If more people talked about abortion that honestly, it would end tomorrow.
I’ve never stopped praying for him. I doubt I ever will. In a very twisted way, I still consider him a “friend”. Very twisted mind you, and undoubtedly one sided, but there you have it.
I wonder what he thinks about all day. Revenge? Remorse? And what was with the Cyanide???
Did anyone here read “Memoirs of an Ex-Prom Queen”? I read it in high school. It spoke to me very powerfully as a girl growing up. It dwelt at length about the obsession with “becoming beautiful” that so very many teen girls and young adult women have. One reviewer noted — very accurately — that the novel was to a large extent about “the tightrope between popularity and promiscuity” that so very many teen girls and young women try to navigate.
Of course, I was a “good girl,” stuck in my room and off that tightrope.
Another thing about “Memoirs of an Ex-Prom Queen.” The protagonist, Sasha, has an illegal abortion. When her body begins rejecting the pregnancy, she goes to the bathroom and sees the fetus as it is coming out. She shouts, “It’s a baby!” She is shocked and appalled because it doesn’t look like “a fish with gills” like she expected but a fully formed “baby.” She is deeply traumatized by the abortion because she feels a human life — her “first baby” — has been killed.
Honesty is always refreshing from the prochoice side, too bad the honest ones tend to also be insane.