An arrest warrant has been issued for abortionist Theodore Roummel, who appeared to intentionally run over a pro-life sidewalk counselor twice at the Women’s Center of Saginaw in Michigan in June.
The alleged attack
Last month, pro-lifer Mark Zimmerman told Live Action News that abortionist Roummel hit him twice with his car, which left Zimmerman seriously injured.
“I was standing in the driveway and the abortionist ran over my leg [using his vehicle]. And then he had to reverse to get off my leg, so he ran me over twice,” Zimmerman said. “He parked his car and came over when the police came, and was screaming at the police about how we always run in front of him — we don’t. But I have four witnesses who saw what happened. So they gave a statement to police, and he was not arrested. He went about and finished his day by doing five abortions.”
Zimmerman was left with a fractured tibia. “It’s close to my ankle, and so I have a stable brace to keep it in place,” he said. “They’re going to put a rod in my tibia with a couple of pins and screws, and that’s less recovery time. I have a walker and a wheelchair that I’m using, and some crutches when I need them. But I have a lovely wife that’s taking care of me.”
According to Lynn Mills, director of Pro-Life Michigan, no one notified Zimmerman that an arrest warrant was being issued for Roummel. Pro-Life Michigan has been filing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, which was how the arrest warrant was discovered.
“He’s doing better; he went out to the abortion facility,” Mills told Live Action News about Zimmerman. “He didn’t know — the police didn’t tell him that the arrest warrant was issued. I guess myself and Pro-Life Michigan, we’re the one on top doing the FOIAs and finding the information out.”
Courtesy of Lynn Mills
History of hitting pro-lifers
Mills said Roummel has been accused of hitting pro-lifers with his car in the past, but a lack of documentation has meant he has gotten away with it — but when the attacks are captured, action can be taken.
“Roummel tried hitting me with his car; he has a habit of doing this,” she said. “Other pro-lifers have complained about him doing this before, at another location. They just wouldn’t follow up on it, they wouldn’t film it, so he kept getting away with it. But this is the second time pro-lifers in Michigan have caught it, captured it, and filed charges against it. And I think it’s important.”
After Roummel ran over Mills herself in 2012, he was arrested, charged with assault, and placed on probation for six months. But he didn’t want to accept responsibility for anything, according to Mills.
“They were fighting tooth-and-nail to not get probation, to not have any consequences, and the judge was very kind, but firm, with him,” she recalled. “He didn’t want a record at all. He didn’t want to be put on probation. It’s like, OK, you get put on probation and then you’re record’s expunged — what are you afraid of? But he’s a reckless driver and he always aims at pro-lifers. The next step would have been the city of Livonia playing the videotape in court; he didn’t want that, so we had to take the plea deal for him being on probation.”
Video footage of current assault
As with Mills, video of the attack on Zimmerman was captured by the facility’s security camera. Though grainy, Zimmerman — the man in jeans and a white shirt — can be seen walking into the driveway. Roummel quickly drives around the corner, and Zimmerman can be seen backing away until he eventually falls. Roummel pauses in his vehicle with Zimmerman on the ground but then reverses, drives forward, and parks before getting out of the car. He reappears on screen several times but never gives aid to Zimmerman. Eventually, he is led offscreen by a young woman in scrubs, presumably a staffer at the abortion facility.
Facility owner accuses pro-lifers of terrorism
The files given to prosecutors for their investigation include two e-mails from the abortion facility owner, Vicki Moore. In the emails, she claims that Zimmerman intentionally ran in front of Roummel as an act of terrorism. The first e-mail reads:
Greetings Det. Severs, I wanted to get this statement from the guard as he is there to this regularly. I will get the other staff members account of what happens on a regular basis for the past 40 yrs. Also, the FACE act is being looked at as well. As I stated Dr Rommel [sic] is also getting legal counsel on the harassment and safety of these actions by the ant-choice [sic] regime. For me I have been a witness ever since we moved in the 80’s. They do try and stop my car and there are people each side if [sic] the driveway and in the street with signs. The do walk away when they see I will not stop, as it is my right to enter the driveway to protect my car from the rd. and to do business.
In the second e-mail, Moore goes into more detail on how she believes Zimmerman wanted to terrorize Roummel by diving in front of his car, outright calling Zimmerman a terrorist. She claims to have “endured the constant harassment of this group which includes Mark…” and accused Zimmerman and other pro-life sidewalk counselors of being “threatening,” saying “they lie in wait” for a car to pull in the driveway. She continued:
This is an element of surprise. When they stand in the middle of the driveway …this stops and blocks any car from coming in and sometimes they try to stop cars on the way out … How is it that they are getting away with this activity when we are in our legal building doing legal business in America….
Moore continued, “WE are afraid to stop as we know our lives could be in danger… WE ARE THE VICTIMS of a long-standing act against everyone who tries to enter. Something must be done to protect us.”
This narrative seems incongruent with what is seen in the video, especially considering Roummel did not drive away or immediately flee inside the abortion facility to get away from the allegedly threatening pro-lifers. He remained outside, and according to witnesses, laughed at Zimmerman as he lay injured on the ground. Roummel also did not call 911 — not to get help for Zimmerman or to ask for police protection for himself.
READ: FBI director: 70% of abortion-related threats and violence are against pro-lifers
“When Roummel hits Mark, the security guard… sat there,” Mills said. “Didn’t run to give him aid. Roummel doesn’t give the injured party aid, either. Doesn’t he have a certain degree of responsibility to go and give aid, administer something?”
Mills also explained that Zimmerman’s position in the driveway was not meant to specifically antagonize Roummel but to be available in case an abortion-minded woman approached.
“We go to several different abortion facilities, and you’re always going back and forth, you’re always maneuvering near the driveways — that’s how you talk to people,” she said. “…Unless you’re suicidal, you don’t throw yourself in the road.”
Additionally, Moore originally told investigators that she didn’t know the password to her security camera. “In the video, you can see that, yes, Mark was there,” Mills said. “But don’t you think it’s interesting that Vicki Moore didn’t know the password to her own video camera?”
Moore also told investigators that she is working with the Department of Justice and the FBI to have Zimmerman prosecuted for violating the FACE (Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances) Act.
Though the arrest warrant has been made, it does not appear Roummel has been arrested yet. Mills noted that in the previous assault against her, he was allowed to surrender himself for arrest, which he did over two months later — a far cry from recent law enforcement raids on the homes of pro-lifers accused of violating the FACE Act.
