Police suspect arson in fire at Wyoming abortion clinic web site

Police believe an in a single day fireplace in Wyoming that damaged a constructing being renovated to accommodate a new abortion clinic was deliberately set

By

MEAD GRUVER Associated Press

Might 25, 2022, 3:57 PM ET

• 2 min learn

CASPER, Wyo. -- An abortion clinic set to open next month in conservative Wyoming was damaged in a hearth early Wednesday that police imagine was intentionally set — possibly by somebody seen working away from the building carrying what appeared to be a gasoline can and a bag.

The blaze damaged the within of the constructing beneath renovation to house the clinic in Casper, the second-biggest metropolis in a state where opposition to abortion is widespread.

The clinic, which also deliberate to offer other well being care providers for women, had been set to open in June as solely the second place in the state to offer abortions. Wyoming’s present lone location for women to get abortions is at a hospital in Jackson, 281 miles (452 kilometers) away.

A person who known as authorities earlier than dawn noticed somebody working from the building with what seemed to be a fuel can and a black bag, police stated in a Facebook post. Investigators were reviewing video footage from the realm in hopes of figuring out the suspect or producing a suspect description, police stated. No accidents have been reported.

Julie Burkhart, the clinic’s director, mentioned clinic organizers had been receiving harassing emails and phone messages. The constructing had video cameras that had been functioning, and police got access to them, she stated.

“Whether you’re against abortion or support abortion rights, you’re not going to make abortion go away,” mentioned Burkhart, a former affiliate of Dr. George Tiller, an abortion supplier who was shot and killed in a Wichita, Kansas, church in 2009.

Protests have been held this spring by abortion opponents at the future clinic web site, and indicators opposing abortion were visible Wednesday in a window of an condominium subsequent door to the building.

Wyoming is one among 13 U.S. states with a so-called trigger law that may instantly outlaw abortion if the Roe v. Wade resolution that legalized it nationwide is overturned by the U.S. Supreme Courtroom. A leaked draft of a ruling suggests that may happen soon.

Police temporarily closed off the street where the small building is located as officers investigated. Several of the constructing's home windows were broken, and smoke harm was visible around one shattered window.