Documents concerning the illegal selling of baby body parts for profit by Planned Parenthood, obtained by the Senate Judiciary Committee during its investigation of the matter, are now being asked for by the FBI.
The documents were first obtained by the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2015, after a pro-life organization, The Center for Medical Progress, released undercover video of Planned Parenthood employees discussing the selling of baby body parts for profit. These videos promoted the start of the investigation and led to Planned Parenthood turning over thousands of documents. Based on the findings, the chairman of the committee, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), stated the FBI should conduct an investigation. The FBI is now asking for all of the obtained documents by the committee, including those in their unredacted form.
On Monday, The Hill explained that under federal law, an abortion provider is allowed to transfer baby body parts for research purposes. While the organization is permitted to receive the amount it cost to perform the abortion in return for giving the remains to research, it is not allowed to make a profit.
The Hill reported on some of the Senate's findings:
In one example cited by the Senate report, a firm’s own records show it paid $60 for an aborted fetus from a Planned Parenthood clinic, then transferred the various parts for $2,275 – including the brain for $325, two eyes for $650, and a part of a liver for $325. The firm also charged additional fees for shipping and disease screening, the report said.
Two years later, Planned Parenthood is still maintaining the organization is not guilty of any wrongdoing, stating that after hearings and multiple investigations in multiple states nothing criminal has been found.
