Catholics assaulted outside Baltimore Planned Parenthood giving faithful witness

Friday, Jun. 09, 2023

(OSV News) — A confrontation May 26 outside the doors of a downtown Baltimore Planned Parenthood center left witnesses at a neighboring pro-life pregnancy center disturbed by the level of violence and praying for the recovery of the injured, both of whom were Catholic.

According to a police report, a 73-year-old man and an 80-year-old man were assaulted, one severely, outside of the Planned Parenthood in a building that shares a wall with Options@328, a pro-life pregnancy resource center operated by the Center for Pregnancy Concerns that opened in 2020 with support from the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Several witnesses saw the attack, police said.

Preceding the attack, the suspect and one of the victims had a conversation concerning “pro-life” and “pro-choice” viewpoints, according to police.

Gina Ruppert, executive director of the Center for Pregnancy Concerns, said her staff heard the commotion and medical personnel from the center assisted the injured men. Ruppert told the Catholic Review, Baltimore’s archdiocesan newspaper, that the men who were assaulted are part of a regular group who assemble for peaceful prayer outside the centers that are on the opposite ends of the abortion debate.

“We often see confrontations but nothing at this level,” said Ruppert, a parishioner of Sacred Heart, Glyndon. “Our ministry starts once people walk in our doors. We can’t control the sidewalks.”

The victims were identified as Dick Schafer and Mark Crosby, parishioners of Christ the King Catholic Church in Towson, Md., by their pastor, Father Ed Meeks. The parish is part of the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, a Roman Catholic diocese with Anglican traditions for the U.S. and Canada established by Pope Benedict XVI.

Personnel from the Center for Pregnancy Concerns provided first aid to the two victims and the more seriously injured victim (reported by Fr. Meeks to be Crosby) was transported to the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center at University of Maryland Medical Center. According to the police report, the victim taken to the medical center was “diagnosed with a large hematoma, hyphema, and head and neck pain.”

A GoFundMe page for Crosby has been set up by Dr. Jay Walton, president of Baltimore County Right to Life, who identified him as a volunteer for the organization. As of midday May 31, more than $37,000 had been raised, well over the $10,000 goal.