Testimony of Anthony Levatino, MD, JD before the Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives on The District of Columbia Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (H.R. 3803) May 17, 2012 (Abridged)

Warning - Graphic Description

My name is Anthony Levatino. I am a board-certified obstetrician gynecologist.... In my 32-year career, I have been privileged to practice obstetrics and gynecology in both private and university settings...... During my residency training and during my first five years of private practice, I performed both first and second-trimester abortions. ....... From 1981 through February 1985, I performed approximately 1200 abortions. Over 100 of them were second-trimester Suction Dilation & Evacuation (D & E) procedures up to 24 weeks gestation....... A second trimester D&E abortion is a blind procedure. The baby can be in any orientation or position inside the uterus. Picture yourself reaching in with the Sopher clamp and grasping anything you can. At twenty-four weeks gestation, the uterus is thin and soft so be careful not to perforate or puncture the walls. Once you have grasped something inside, squeeze on the clamp to set the jaws and pull hard - really hard. You feel something let go and out pops a fully formed leg about six inches long. Reach in again and grasp whatever you can. Set the jaw and pull really hard once again and out pops an arm about the same length. Reach in again and again with that clamp and tear out the spine, intestines, heart and lungs.

The toughest part of a D&E abortion is extracting the baby's head. The head of a baby that age is about the size of a large plum.... You can be pretty sure you have hold of it if the Sopher clamp is spread about as far as your fingers will allow. You know you have it right when you crush down on the clamp and see white gelatinous material coming through the cervix. That was the baby's brains. You can then extract the skull pieces. Many times a little face may come out and stare back at you. Congratulations! You have just successfully performed a second-trimester Suction D&E abortion.

If you refuse to believe that this procedure inflicts severe pain on that unborn child, please think again.

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Following the death of his young daughter in a road accident, Dr. Levatino realised he was killing someone's child by performing an abortion. He is now a medical director for two pregnancy health centers, has founded a crisis pregnancy center, and is a medical adviser for Priests for Life.

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