Kermit Gosnell

Kermit Barron Gosnell (February 9, 1941 – March 1, 2026) was an American serial killer and abortion doctor. At his clinic in West Philadelphia, Gosnell provided illegal late-term abortions, committed post-labor infanticide after many live births, and ran a prescription pill mill which eventually attracted federal attention. Gosnell was convicted of the murders of three infants who were born alive after using drugs to induce labor, the manslaughter of one woman who died of an anesthetic overdose during an abortion procedure, and of several other abortion- and drug-related crimes. Staff at Gosnell's clinic testified that there were hundreds of infants born alive during abortion procedures and subsequently killed either by Gosnell himself or on Gosnell's orders by staff.

Gosnell, based in the Mantua neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, owned and operated the Women's Medical Society Clinic, a non-compliant abortion clinic located at 3801 Lancaster Avenue that was dubbed a "house of horrors" during his criminal trial. In a 2010 raid, authorities found the intact human remains of 47 fetuses and babies stored in bags and cartons, numerous of which were suspected and later confirmed to be victims of infanticide. In 2011, Gosnell, his wife Pearl, and eight employees were charged with a total of 32 felonies and 227 misdemeanors in connection with numerous deaths, illegal abortion procedures, and regulatory violations. Gosnell was also a prolific prescriber of numerous controlled substances, including OxyContin. Pearl and the eight employees pleaded guilty to various charges in 2011, while Gosnell pleaded not guilty and sought a jury trial.

In May 2013, Gosnell was convicted of first-degree murder in the deaths of three of the infants and involuntary manslaughter in the death of Karnamaya Mongar, an adult patient at the clinic who died following an abortion procedure.