By Cheryl Sullenger
Trenton, NJ – Disgraced abortionist Steven Chase Brigham has been denied a hearing before the New Jersey Supreme Court in his five-years crusade to restore his medical license. This lets stand the appellate court ruling that upheld his 2014 license revocation.
“We are relieved that this is the end of the line for Brigham’s license appeals,” said Troy Newman, President of Operation Rescue. “He has a documented history of deception, illegal activities, and dangerous, corners-cutting practices that reaches back into the 1980s. He is without doubt one of the worst abortionists in America that is not currently in jail.”
In September 2018, a New Jersey Appellate Court ruled that there was sufficient evidence to justify the revocation order.
Brigham had been operating an illegal bi-state late-term abortion scheme and practicing medicine without a license in Maryland.
Brigham was starting abortions – some over 30 weeks gestation – at his unlicensed office in Vorhees, New Jersey, where he was only authorized to conduct abortion up to 14 weeks. After giving women drugs to induce labor, Brigham then caravanned the women to a clandestine abortion facility in Elkton, Maryland, where the abortions were completed.
In September 2010, Brigham’s late-term abortion scheme was uncovered when one woman suffered a near-fatal botched abortion. She was Life Flighted to Baltimore for emergency surgery that saved her life.
As a result, Brigham and his associate, Nicola Riley, were arrested and extradited to Cecil County, Maryland, to face murder charges after police raided the Elkton clinic and discovered over 30 bodies of late-term aborted babies stored in a bloody freezer. Maryland allows the filing of murder charges for pre-born babies killed in the commission of a crime. Those charges were soon dropped when it could not be determined if the babies died in Maryland, or in New Jersey, where the abortion process was initiated.
The loss of his medical license precluded Brigham from maintaining legal ownership in his seven New Jersey abortion facilities. However, due to a paperwork change, he continues to handle the day-to-day business dealings of his American Women’s Services abortion chain.
In order to satisfy New Jersey law – at least on paper – Brigham transferred ownership to his Medical Director, an 82-year old abortionist with a history of disciplinary action for illicit sexual contact with patients. However, he apparently was not aware that he was the new owner until questioned by the Maryland Board of Physicians in 2015.
According to the complaint filed against Kaji at that time, the Attorney General’s office stated that Kaji’s “ownership of American Healthcare Services, P.C. is a sham transfer and thus constitutes the use or employment of dishonesty, deception, misrepresentation, false promise or false pretense.” (Read more about this.)
That case was set aside when issues arose related to Kaji’s competence after a stroke left his dominate right hand impaired and reports of frequent confusion surfaced.
In January 2019, Kaji’s medical license was finally revoked due to the onset of dementia and physical disabilities that inhibited his ability to conduct surgical abortions.
There is no word on if or when the New Jersey Attorney General’s office will take up the case again concerning the ownership/medical director issues with Brigham’s abortion clinics.
“It is obvious that Brigham still controls these businesses despite what his paperwork might say. As long as he has any role in any abortion business, women will be at risk of exploitation and harm,” said Newman. “I urge the state Attorney General’s Office to immediately act to shut down Brigham’s seven abortion facilities and put Brigham out of business in New Jersey for good.”