Suit claims doctor didn't report abortion on 13-year-old immediately

FORT WAYNE, Ind., Sept. 19 (UPI) -- Two state offices received complaints that a Fort Wayne, Ind., doctor performed an abortion on a 13-year-old girl and failed to properly report it as required.

Two women, members of the Allen County Right to Life organization, filed the complaints with the Indiana Attorney General's Office and Indiana Medical Licensing Board Wednesday against Dr. Ulrich Klopfer, The (Fort Wayne) Journal Gazette reported Thursday.

In the complaints, Klopfer is accused of performing an abortion on the teen in February and failing to report it to the Indiana Department of Health within three days of performing the procedure as required by state law.

Klopfer reported the abortion to the Health Department in July, paperwork from the state agency indicated.

Klopfer, who works for the Fort Wayne Women's Health Organization, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

While paperwork indicates Klopfer might not have immediately reported the abortion to the department of health, it was unclear whether he reported it to another state agency, The Journal Gazette said.

Doctors who do not report to the state three days after performing an abortion on girls younger than 14 could be be sentenced to up to 180 days in jail and fined up to $1,000, the newspaper said.

In Indiana, having sex with a person younger than 14 is considered child molesting. State law mandates that doctors and certain other medical staff report suspected child abuse.

"It's heartbreaking to learn that a 13-year-old became pregnant and now must live with the pain of an abortion for the rest of her life, but it's doubly heartbreaking that Dr. Klopfer's failure to report the abortion may have allowed the girl's molester to walk free," Cathie Humbarger, Allen County Right to Life executive director and one of the complainants, said in a statement.