Roeder Convicted of
First Degree Murder

Monica Migliorino Miller, Ph.D
Director of Citizens for a Pro-Livfe Society

Scott Roeder, who shot notorius late term abortionist, Dr. George Tiller, was found guilty of first degree muder, which carries a sentence of life in prison.

During his trial Mr. Roder testified that he shot Tiller to stop him from killing the innocent unborn.

In light of the January 29, 2010 Scott Roder conviction,  this working paper on the ethics of using force in defence of the unborn,  is offered for your consideration. My conclusion is that lethal force cannot be justified-- though it is not intrinsically immoral. The point of this paper is to examine this issue with a critical mind. (On the right is a photo of Scott Roeder)

My conclusion is that lethal force cannot be justified-- though it is not intrinsically immoral. The point of this paper is to examine this issue with a critical mind.

Here are some thoughts regarding the Roeder case:

1. According to principles articulated in my paper-- Roeder's killing of abortionist George Tiller, was an illicit use of force--even though his motive was licit.
2.  Roeder is not morally guilty of murder. Murder is the morally unjustified taking of innocent human life. Roeder is not guilty of that. He is guilty of an unjustified use of force against an unjust aggressor and so the judge, in the Roeder's case, should have permitted the jury to consider the lesser charge of manslaughter and he did not.
3.  The Roeder trial was not a fair trial as long as the victims of abortion were dismissed as non-persons and Tiller's killing of the innocent was never a consideration. And unfortunately since, legally-speaking, no injury is cause to the unborn in abortion--Roeder's defense was, from the start, restricted, unfair and unbalanced.