A judge ordered a woman who set fire to Wyoming’s only full-service abortion clinic to pay nearly $300,000 in restitution, the full amount sought by prosecutors.
Lorna Green is serving five years in prison for burning down Wellspring Health Access weeks before the clinic opened in Casper in 2022.
The fire destroyed the building while it was being renovated for the new clinic and delayed its opening by almost a year.
After opening last April, Wellspring is now the only abortion clinic in Wyoming.
A clinic in Jackson that provided abortions with pills closed Dec. 15 due to rising costs.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Alan Johnson ordered Green, 22, to pay about $298,000 in restitution, including $240,000 to Nationwide General Insurance Company, the clinic’s insurer.
Green must also pay $33,500 to the building’s owner, Christine Lichtenfels, and $24,500 to Julie Burkhart, founder and president of Wellspring Health Access.
A judge ordered Roxanne Green, who set fire to Wellspring Health Access weeks before the clinic opened, to pay nearly $300,000 in restitution. AP
Burkhart expressed satisfaction with the restitution.
“Not only did we have the emotional struggle and trauma of the arson, but it was also a huge financial challenge for us. So I’m glad this is the final piece and it’s been put aside,” Burkhart said Wednesday.
The restitution was identical to the amounts requested by prosecutors and was unopposed by Green’s attorney, Ryan Semerad, who in an emailed statement Wednesday said Green “looks forward to a productive and peaceful life after his term of imprisonment”.
Roxanne Green is seen wearing a hoodie setting fire to what would be Wyoming’s only abortion clinic. Casper Police Department / Facebook
Green has expressed remorse for the crime, which she says was motivated by anxiety and nightmares about the planned clinic.
The Casper College mechanical engineering student had shown no signs of anti-abortion views on social media, but told investigators she opposed abortion.
He admitted driving from Laramie to Casper, breaking into the clinic through a door and lighting gasoline which he poured into trays and splashed on the floor.
The fire-damaged Wellspring Health Access clinic is cordoned off with tape on May 25, 2022 in Casper, Wyoming. AP
After months of little progress, investigators increased the reward to $15,000 and obtained tips that led to Green’s arrest in March.
Green pleaded guilty in June to arson and received the minimum prison sentence in September. He had faced up to 20 years in prison.
The arson and eventual opening of the clinic came as new laws in Wyoming sought to ban abortion in almost all cases.
Roxanne Green expressed remorse for the crime and said it was driven by anxiety and nightmares about the planned clinic. Casper Police Department / Facebook
The laws, including the country’s first explicit ban on abortion pills, were suspended by a judge amid a lawsuit filed by four women and two nonprofit organizations, including Wellspring Health Access.
After hearing arguments in the lawsuit on Dec. 14, Wyoming District Judge Melissa Owens is weighing whether to rule on the laws.
Their decision would likely be appealed, bringing Wyoming’s abortion laws before the state Supreme Court.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn