(Oregon Right to Life) — Infamous abortionist and murderer Kermit Gosnell died while serving multiple prison sentence earlier this month. Convicted of horrific infanticides, Gosnell’s name has become synonymous with brutality.
Kermit Gosnell, 85, was serving several life sentences in a Pennsylvania prison at the time of his death. Officials said he died after a brief hospitalization on March 1st, though his passing was not made public until weeks later.
During a career spanning decades, Gosnell performed late-term abortions and infanticides – actions for which he was finally arrested and prosecuted.
For almost four decades, the notorious abortion provider ran a Pennsylvania abortion facility later dubbed the “House of Horrors,” which was notable for its poor conditions, lack of cleanliness, and gross medical violations and crimes. A 281-page Grand Jury report summary stated that Gosnell “regularly and illegally delivered live, viable, babies in the third trimester of pregnancy – and then murdered these newborns by severing their spinal cords with scissors… Most of these acts cannot be prosecuted, because Gosnell destroyed the files.”
Gosnell was ultimately convicted of 237 crimes, including late-term abortions after 24 weeks (which are illegal in Pennsylvania), the first-degree murders of three infants who were delivered alive and then killed, and the involuntary manslaughter of a patient, Karnamaya Mongar.
In a Monday statement responding to the news of Gosnell’s death, National Right to Life President Carol Tobias pointed out that – while Gosnell’s actions were particularly horrific – all abortions violently end the lives of unborn human beings.
“Gosnell’s actions underscore a reality our nation continues to ignore. Each abortion – no matter how it is performed – deliberately and brutally takes at least one innocent human life,” Tobias said.
“Every day, unborn children—including those at late gestational ages—are intentionally killed in an abortion,” she continued. “Women continue to be harmed, and sometimes die, from abortion procedures.”
In a post on social media, Live Action founder and president Lila Rose noted that Gosnell “wasn’t created to do evil — he was created for good,” and encouraged prayers.
BREAKING: Kermit Gosnell has died in prison
He was an abortionist and convicted murderer, responsible for ending the lives of thousands of unborn babies, many who were born alive
He wasn’t created to do evil — he was created for good
Pray he repented on his death bed and may… pic.twitter.com/ah9WFixtwf
— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) March 23, 2026
While Gosnell’s crimes have drawn strong condemnation nationwide, elective abortion up to the moment of birth is legal in numerous U.S. states, including Oregon and Colorado.
Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) reportedly performs abortions through 34 weeks gestation, well past “viability” (when an unborn baby can survive outside the womb). The Lilith Clinic in downtown Portland advertises abortions through 26 weeks. Across Oregon, the number of late-term abortions continues to increase, with 284 abortions performed at or after 23 weeks gestation in 2024 compared with 225 the previous year, according to Oregon Health Authority (OHA) data.
In Colorado, a late-term abortion facility in Boulder finally closed its doors last year after five decades in operation. The facility was run by Warren Hern, a notorious abortion provider known for performing abortions well into the third trimester, as well as for his controversial statements characterizing humanity as a “malignant ecotumor.”
RELATED: Notorious Late-Term Colorado Abortion Facility Run by Warren Hern Closes After 50 Years
The continued availability of legal late-term abortion is out of step with the majority of Americans.
Recent national polling found that 57% of respondents support limiting abortions to the first trimester and 67% support at least some legal limits. Oregon Right to Life is committed to restoring the legal right to life of the unborn.
