David Daleiden

David Daleiden
Born David Robert Daleiden[1]
(1989-01-01) January 1, 1989
Santa Clara County, California U.S.
Nationality United States
Education Davis Senior High School (2007)
Alma mater Claremont McKenna College
Occupation Activist
Home town Davis, California
Religion Christian (Catholic)

David Robert Daleiden (born 1989,[2] California) is a pro-life activist who worked for Live Action before founding the Irvine, California-based The Center for Medical Progress (CMP) in 2013.[3][4]

Early life

Daleiden says he is the "child of a crisis pregnancy" and grew up "culturally Catholic."[5] His mother, Gina Surkala Daleiden, is a public official in her son's home town of Davis, California. Gina Surkala Daleiden served 9 years as a trustee on the Davis School Board, worked as deputy for several Yolo County officeholders, and is presently the Executive Director of First 5 Yolo, an appointed position.[6][7]

He graduated from Davis High School in 2007 and later from Claremont McKenna College.[8][9][10][11][12]

Pro-life controversy

In 2015, Daleiden released videos showing Planned Parenthood officials discussing fees for human fetal tissue and organs.[13][14] Daleiden, an associate of Lila Rose,[15] ran a Live Action chapter in 2007 and was the organization’s director of research "during the early stages" of the project to make secret recordings of Planned Parenthood clinics.[16] Daleiden went on to set up a group called the "Center for Medical Progress"[17] and registered it as a tax-exempt biomedicine charity.[18] Daleiden set up a fake biomedical research company, called Biomax Procurement Services,[15] and created secret recordings where his associates asked about tissue donation costs, and questioned whether tissue samples could be acquired from African American patients with sickle-cell anemia.[19] Planned Parenthood claims that they may donate fetal tissue at the request of a patient, but such tissue is never sold.[19][20]

The videos were shown to Republican Congressmen Trent Franks and Tim Murphy two weeks before being made publicly available,[21] leading commentators to note that the timing of the release appears to coincide with the Republican nomination and a bipartisan bill to raise money for Susan G. Komen for the Cure.[5][22]

On July 31, 2015, the National Abortion Federation sued CMP and Daleiden, alleging that Daleiden's campaign violates its members’ privacy and is a threat to their safety.[23]

On January 22, 2016, Daleiden appeared on C-SPAN for a question-and-answer session that included viewer call-ins discussing his viewpoints on abortion where he advocated reverting current laws back to the time when all elective abortions were criminal acts. The segment's opposing view was preceded by NARAL Pro-Choice America policy director Donna Crane.[24][25]

Criminal charges

On January 25, 2016, a grand jury in Harris County in Houston, Texas, that originally had investigated the Gulf Coast chapter of Planned Parenthood indicted Daleiden on a felony count of tampering with governmental records by making and using a fake driver's license,[26] and a misdemeanor charge for emailing an offer to buy fetal tissue for $1,600.[27][28][29]

Daleiden faces a prison sentence of up to 22 years if convicted of crimes alleged by the grand jury, according to the Washington Post.[27]

He turned himself in in Harris County, Texas on February 4, 2016,[30][31] and appeared in court after posting $3,000 bond.[32] Daleiden has reportedly rejected a plea deal in the case. [33]

References

  1. ↑ "California Birth Index 1905-1995". California Office of Health Information and Research. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Sting Videos Part Of Longtime Campaign Against Planned Parenthood". NPR. July 22, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  3. ↑ Jonathan Stempel (July 31, 2015). "Anti-abortion group is sued over video releases". Reuters.
  4. ↑ Thanawala, Sudhin (July 31, 2015). "Judge blocks release of recordings by anti-abortion group". Associated Press.
  5. 1 2 "With Planned Parenthood Videos, Activist Ignites Abortion Issue". New York Times. July 23, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Gina Daleiden". Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  7. ↑ Vanguard Administrator (September 10, 2015). "Gina Daleiden Named Interim Director of First 5 Yolo". Davis Vanguard. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  8. ↑ Sandhya Somashekhar (October 14, 2015). "Meet the millennial who infiltrated the guarded world of abortion providers". Washington Post. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Why the Catholic Behind the Planned Parenthood Videos Went Undercover". National Catholic Register. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  10. ↑ "DHS grad at center of abortion controversy". Davis Enterprise. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Sacramento News & Review - David Daleiden's homegrown anti-abortion scandal - Feature Story - Local Stories - November 12, 2015". News & Review. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Creator of covert Planned Parenthood videos in the spotlight". Associated Press Big Story. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  13. ↑ Rhodan, Maya (July 14, 2015). "Republican Presidential Contenders Slam Planned Parenthood Over Video". Time. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  14. ↑ Basu, Tanya (July 21, 2015). "Activists Release Second Video Slamming Planned Parenthood Fetal Tissue Donations". Time. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  15. 1 2 "Who Is the 26-Year-Old Man Behind the Planned Parenthood 'Sting' Videos?". Yahoo Health. July 22, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Maker of Planned Parenthood Video Called Abortion 'Genocide'". The Daily Beast. July 15, 2015.
  17. ↑ "Planned Parenthood: More Sting Videos Are Coming". Huffington Post. The CMP was founded by David Daleiden, an anti-abortion activist who previously worked for the group Live Action, known for its heavily edited undercover videos of Planned Parenthood staffers.
  18. ↑ "Group Behind Planned Parenthood Sting Video May Have Tricked IRS, Donors". The Huffington Post. July 17, 2015.
  19. 1 2 "Planned Parenthood says video part of decadelong harassment". July 20, 2015.
  20. ↑ Bassett, Laura (July 20, 2015). "Planned Parenthood: More Sting Videos Are Coming". Huffington Post.
  21. ↑ "Lawmakers Knew About Planned Parenthood Video Weeks Ago (Video)". Rollcall.com. July 16, 2015.
  22. ↑ "Coincidence ... or Is It? Planned Parenthood ‘Sting’ Video Isn’t First to Derail Legislation". Yahoo Health. July 17, 2015.
  23. ↑ "State Probes Find Zero Planned Parenthood Violations As Antiabortion Group Is Sued Over Undercover Videos". Yahoo News. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  24. ↑ "Washington Journal: David Daleiden on Planned Parenthood". C-SPAN.org. Retrieved 2016-01-29.
  25. ↑ "Washington Journal: Donna Crane on Supreme Court Abortion Case". C-SPAN.org. Retrieved 2016-01-29.
  26. ↑ The Harris County, Texas grand jury charged Daleiden with making, presenting and using a California driver's license "with the intent to defraud and harm another [ . . . ]". The photocopy attached to the indictment appears to show a California driver's license in the name of "Robert David Sarkis." Indictment, Jan. 25, 2016, The State of Texas v. David Robert Daleiden, case no. 1496318, 338th District Court, Harris County, Texas.
  27. 1 2 Danielle Paquette (January 26, 2016). "The charges against anti-Planned Parenthood filmmaker, explained". Washington Post. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  28. ↑ "Grand Jury Won't Take Action Against Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast". Channel 13 Eyewitness News. Channel 13 News Houston. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
  29. ↑ Fernandez, Manny (January 25, 2016). "2 Abortion Foes Behind Planned Parenthood Videos Are Indicted". The New York Times.
  30. ↑ Sandhya Somashekhar (February 4, 2016). "Activist behind anti-Planned Parenthood videos turns himself in". Washington Post. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  31. ↑ Ruthy Munoz (February 4, 2016). "Indicted anti-abortion activist behind videos appears in Texas court". Reuters. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  32. ↑ "The Latest: Anti-abortion activist surrenders in Texas". Associated Press. February 4, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2016 – via Miami Herald.
  33. ↑ "2 behind Planned Parenthood videos rejecting plea deals". Associated Press. 29 April 2016.
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