010101Abortion doctor faces extortion charge
      January 1, 2001
      
      ORLANDO, Florida (AP) -- As one of Florida's best-known abortion 
      providers, Dr. James Scott Pendergraft is no stranger to courtrooms. 
      He successfully sued the city of Orlando after he was blocked from opening 
      a clinic. He sued Marion County and the city of Ocala, claiming they 
      weren't allowing off-duty officers to moonlight at his clinic there. He 
      sued demanding a buffer zone from anti-abortion protesters at the Ocala 
      clinic. 
      Now Pendergraft himself is being taken to court: Federal prosecutors 
      accuse him and an associate of lying under oath in an effort to extort a 
      big settlement from Marion County in exchange for dropping the lawsuit 
      over the off-duty officers. 
      Abortion rights advocates say the case is retaliation for Pendergraft's 
      effort to get better law enforcement for his Ocala clinic, which is 
      protested daily by abortion opponents. 
      Pendergraft has five clinics in Florida, and has distributed condoms with 
      his clinic name on the cover, put up billboards, advertised on the radio 
      and set up a Web site. He wears a bulletproof vest and a helmet when in 
      Ocala. 
      Trials for Pendergraft and his real estate consultant, Michael Spielvogel, 
      begin Tuesday in Ocala, 60 miles northwest of Orlando. 
      Bob Mosakowski, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office, said he 
      couldn't comment on the specifics of the case. 
      Pendergraft says he is innocent: "I have not done anything that I thought 
      was illegal or criminal." Spielvogel's attorney, Dan Brodersen, didn't 
      return calls to his office. 
      The government's case revolves around threats that Spielvogel claims were 
      made to him by the Marion County Commission chairman, Larry Cretul. 
      The charges stem from what happened next: Pendergraft's attorney, Roy 
      Lucas, sent a letter to the Marion County attorney hinting he would 
      include the alleged comments in the lawsuit and seek damages against 
      Cretul and the county. He suggested they meet to talk about settling 
      Pendergraft's lawsuit. 
      "What do you suppose ... a jury will award the victims of the threats by 
      Mr. Cretul?" the letter said. "I will ask at least $1.5 million for each 
      of the four named plaintiffs. I can envision a jury awarding $5 million 
      each, plus punitives. With such threats, the only issue is 'How Much?"' 
      Spielvogel claimed in an affidavit that Cretul told him in a threatening 
      manner he wouldn't send his family to Ocala if he were in Spielvogel's 
      shoes. Spielvogel also claimed that Cretul alluded to Ocala's previous 
      abortion clinic, which had been burned to the ground twice in the late 
      1980s, and the bombing of an Alabama clinic two years ago. 
      Spielvogel also said Cretul said it was not a matter of "if" but "when" 
      Pendergraft's clinic would be bombed. Spielvogel reported the alleged 
      comments to the FBI. 
      Pendergraft said in an affidavit that Spielvogel had repeated the 
      statements to him. The doctor said he believed them to be true since 
      Spielvogel's reaction "was that of someone seriously frightened of his 
      safety and life." 
      Cretul didn't return a phone call at work and has an unpublished home 
      telephone number. 
      Much of the government's case will hinge on whether Spielvogel lied. When 
      asked if he thought Spielvogel had lied to him, Pendergraft said, "I would 
      rather not comment on that." Pendergraft and Spielvogel will put on 
      separate defenses. 
      Lucas, Pendergraft's attorney, is known for fashioning the 
      right-to-privacy argument in Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court case 
      that legalized abortion. 
      But when he handled Pendergraft's lawsuit against Marion County, the case 
      languished. Although a judge initially granted a preliminary injunction 
      for Pendergraft, the case later was dismissed for lack of action. 
      Pendergraft and Spielvogel are charged with conspiracy to commit 
      extortion, mail fraud and making false statements. 
      If convicted, Pendergraft faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison 
      and fines of $750,000. Spielvogel, who faces two additional charges of 
      making false statements, could be sentenced to up to 40 years in prison 
      and $1.25 million in fines. 
      "For all people who perform abortion, this should be a serious wakeup 
      call," Pendergraft said. "It will send a chilling effect across the entire 
      nation ... that something as scary as this can happen to anyone who is 
      bringing a legitimate lawsuit."