Activist Killed While Standing for Life

A pro-life activist who was protesting abortion in front of a high school in Owosso, Michigan, was gunned down by a man who was offended by the stand he was taking for life. The victim, James Pouillon of Owosso, was well-known in the area for his pro-life activities. He was known as “the abortion sign guy." He spent much time standing on street corners holding up signs with pictures of aborted children.

Authorities say the suspect, 33-year-old Harlan James Drake, was offended by anti-abortion material that the activist had displayed across from the school all week. Shiawassee County Prosecutor Randy Colbry says Harlan James Drake is accused of shooting 63-year-old James Pouillon in front of a Michigan high school. Hours later, Drake is accused of killing another man Mike Fuoss, 61, at a nearby gravel pit company. It is unclear if the motives for the shootings are related.

The Michigan prosecutor says Drake planned to kill a third man, but was thwarted by police.

Wendy Wright, President of Concerned Women for America stated, "We are shocked at this senseless violence against a peaceful man. Jim Pouillon sincerely lived out his belief that babies have the right to be born. He dedicated his life to convincing others to reject the violence of abortion. It is a tragedy upon tragedy that a peaceful man who tried to end violence was himself violently killed."

Leaders of Priests for Life, a network of clergy and lay people dedicated to ending abortion, reacted today to the statements that Pouillon was killed by a man who was upset by his pro-life activism.

"James Pouillon today joined the approximately 4,000 other victims who will be killed today because of abortion," said Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life. "The taking of all innocent lives must stop. I call on the leaders of the so called 'pro-choice' movement to condemn this killing and to consider all of the people who lose their lives to abortion every single day."

"Mr. Pouillon was known as the 'sign guy' because he had the courage to show people what abortion really is," said Janet Morana, Priest for Life's Executive Director. "This brutal murder will not deter pro-lifers from continuing to expose the horror of what abortion does, not just to the baby who loses his life, but also to the mother who lives with the truth of abortion the rest of her life."

"In the Fifties and Sixties, people lost their lives to secure the civil rights of those victimized by discrimination," added Dr. Alveda King, Pastoral Associate of Priests for Life and niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "Now, James Pouillon has lost his life in the civil rights cause of the 21st Century, the struggle to protect the right to life of every single person, born and unborn. Mr. Pouillon has not died in vain; the struggle will only be renewed because of his courage and sacrifice."

“First and foremost, violence is reprehensible," King continued. "A sure way to stop the murdering spirit that is ravaging America is to stop murdering babies in the womb. We grieve with the family over the loss of yet another prolife valiant warrior.”
 
"We are shocked to learn of the killing of pro-life activist Jim Pouillon, a man who day after day stood as a witness to the violence of abortion. Now he himself is a victim of violence," said Joseph M. Scheidler, national director of the Chicago- based Pro-Life Action League, "Just last month at a clinic on the north side of Chicago a man shouted to one of our counselors, 'I'll get my gun and shoot you through the head.' On a number of occasions, our 'Face the Truth Tour' was threatened with deadly weapons."

"When the late term abortionist, Dr. George Tiller, was murdered, the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney's Office launched a federal investigation into federal crimes in connection with the murder, and the Civil Rights Division convened a meeting of the National Task Force on Violence Against Reproductive Health Care Providers," commented Scheidler. "Now the Pro-Life Action League is calling on those government agencies to investigate this murder and established a task force to protect pro-life advocates."

Immediately after Pouillon was shot, Ossowo Hish School was placed on immediate lockdown, though no students were hurt or involved in the shooting, school officials told the paper. Police barricaded a section of street in front of the high school, where a large sign bearing the image of a baby and the word "Life" was visible, according to the Flint Journal.