Rent Broken Justice

Synopsis

Broken Justice is a true story about Dr. Ken Edelin, a young, black doctor who arrived in Boston in 1971 to do his residency training in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Boston City Hospital. In April 1974 he was three months away from completing his residency when he was indicted on a charge of manslaughter by a secret Grand Jury. The indictment concerned an abortion he had performed on a 17-year old girl, and the alleged victim washer aborted fetus. The indictment was sought by an over zealous, anti-abortion prosecutor and because of the racial, political and religious climate which existed in Boston the indictment received national and international attention. In January of 1975 his sensational six week trial began before a jury which was all white, predominantly male and overwhelmingly Catholic. The dynamic confluences of race, sex and revenge played out in a Boston courtroom. The book reveals, for the first time, the maneuverings and conflicts which went on behind the scenes during the time leading up to the trial and during the trial itself. The bitter determination of the prosecuting attorney to impose his personal religious views as the law of the land provides important lessons as we struggle to reach a new social compact for the 21st Century; equal rights for people of both sexes and all races remains central to our national debate. The Supreme Court has recently handed down a landmark decision, intervening in the abortion debate to decree what medical procedure a doctor may or may not use in considering the health and well-being of women seeking legal abortions. The strategy used to get this Supreme Court sanctioned law passed and signedis the same strategy used to indict and try Dr. Edelin more than 30 years ago.For everyone who cares about civil and reproductive rights, this is an important book.

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