Reporting from Wichita, Kan. — A long, difficult chapter in the struggle over legalized abortion came to an end today, when the family of slain physician George Tiller announced this morning that it would permanently close his Wichita abortion clinic, Women's Health Care Services.
Tiller, 67, was shot to death in the vestibule of his Lutheran church on May 31, where he served as an usher.
The shuttering of his clinic means there are no abortion providers left in the Wichita area, and only two other clinics in the country that perform late-term abortions, Tiller's specialty.
In a statement released by attorneys Dan Monnat and Lee Thompson, Tiller's wife, Jeanne, and their four adult children said that the family was "ceasing operation of the clinic and any involvement by family members in any other similar clinic.
"We are proud of the service and courage shown by our husband and father and know that women's healthcare needs have been met because of his dedication and service," the family said in the statement. "That is a legacy that will never die. The family will honor Dr. Tiller's memory through private charitable activities."
In the statement, the family assured Tiller's past patients that their privacy and records "will remain as fiercely protected now and in the future as they were during Dr. Tiller's lifetime."
Abortion rights supporters said the clinic's closing did not represent a defeat for the movement.
"It's what the extremist wing of the antiabortion movement wanted," said Katherine Spillar, executive vice president of the group Feminist Majority. "But this is not a victory for them."
She said that although the closing would be disruptive in the short term -- women who expected to have second- and third-term abortions at Tiller's clinic will have to seek them elsewhere -- she expected it to spur more doctors nationwide to begin providing late-term abortions.
"I think that you will see a regrouping and a determination on the part of the medical community in this country," she said. "In the meantime, we are working to ensure that all women in this country have access to the medical care they need."
Spillar said she understood the Tiller family's decision to close the clinic. "The family has just suffered the loss of the husband and father at the end of 30 years of harassment and violence," she said. "That's the reality."
