In a bizzarre change of fate, while a Texas Grand Jury was investigating Planned Parenthood for alleged misconduct, an indictment was placed against two figureheads of the pro-life movement. David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt, the creators of Planned Parenthood videos that claimed to show monetary trade for fetal tissues, organs, and body parts, are facing an indictment for allegedly tampering with a government record. This is Daleiden’s secon charge involved with Planned Parenthood after his first charge of criminal misconduct for purchasing human organs involved with the videos.
David Daleiden is a prominent campaigner for the pro-life movement around America. He began anti-abortion activism in high school, and soon became a research director for Live Action, the organization that revealed the first Planned Parenthood video in 2011. To obtain the footage, Daleiden and Merritt posed as representatives of a fake biomedical company and according to Planned Parenthood, offered to pay a large amount of money for fetal matter.
These videos were edited and pieced back together, calling their validity into question. Some of the footage found claiming to be from Planned Parenthood abortion clinics were actually of a still born baby Daleiden had purchased online and then falsely claimed it had been an aborted fetus of the same age.
Planned Parenthood is a popular destination for women’s healthcare services. Three percent of the procedures done at Planned Parenthood are abortions, and by law no federal money may be used on abortions.
In the fall of 2015, the organization was found in the middle of a heated debate on whether or not federal funding should be removed from the heathcare facility. They have passed investigations in 11 other states clearing them of any wrongdoing. Planned Parenthood maintains that they do not profit from the sale of fetal tissue and only make enough to break even, but will no longer be accepting reimbursement.