CLAREMONT, N.H. (AP) - There have been no reported disturbances at a New Hampshire Planned Parenthood clinic since it was badly damaged a year ago by a hatchet-wielding boy, police said.
Police say the boy destroyed computers, plumbing fixtures, phones and medical equipment inside the Claremont clinic on Oct. 21. They have refused to disclose his age or give details of the case, citing juvenile court privacy rules. The clinic reopened about a month later.
Police Chief Alexander Scott says the clinic installed internal security upgrades. Police also have been conducting extra patrols and building checks. He said there have been no other reports of vandalism or disturbances reported at the clinic.
Officials did not determine whether the vandalism was linked to the word “murderer” spray-painted on the same building several weeks earlier.
Jennifer Frizzell, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England’s vice president for public policy, said there have been no additional incidents of vandalism, violence or property damage at its other health centers in New Hampshire in the past year.
“Our Manchester health center experiences a regular volume of protests and scheduled demonstrations on the public sidewalk adjacent to our entrance, so this activity occasionally leads to complaints or the involvement of security guard or police officer to maintain boundaries and access,” she said.
Planned Parenthood, which recently celebrated its 100th anniversary, offers birth control, sex education and abortions. Planned Parenthood’s foes denounce its role as the nation’s leading abortion provider, although most efforts to defund the group have been thwarted.
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