Shelly Shannon
Encyclopedia
Rachelle Ranae "Shelley" Shannon (born 1956) is an anti-abortion gunwoman
, saboteur
, and rhetoric
ian from Grants Pass, Oregon
. She shot Dr. George Tiller
in both arms, outside his abortion
clinic in Wichita
, Kansas
, on August 19, 1993. She is serving her sentence at FCI Waseca
, a prison in Minnesota, and her projected release date is November 7, 2018.
in both arms, outside his Wichita
, Kansas
clinic.
At the time she shot Tiller, Shannon had been a part of the anti-abortion movement for at least five years. She had written in support of Michael Griffin
, the murderer of Dr. David Gunn
, calling Griffin "the awesomest, greatest hero of our time." Tiller's Wichita clinic was the site of frequent demonstrations and incidents of direct action by those opposed to abortion
rights and of counter-demonstrations by abortion rights activists. Under cover of such a fracas, Shannon shot Tiller with a semiautomatic pistol.
Tiller was later assassinated on May 31, 2009, by Scott Roeder.
. She was sentenced to 11 years in prison.
While incarcerated in Lansing, Kansas
, Shannon signed the Army of God's statement in support of the actions of Paul Jennings Hill
.
On June 4, 1995, she pleaded guilty to setting fires at several abortion clinics in Oregon
, California
, Idaho
and Nevada
. She had been indicted
by federal grand juries
on 30 counts in connection with fires and butyric acid
attacks at nine clinics. Charges included arson
, interference with commerce by force and interstate travel in aid of racketeering.
On September 9, 1995, U.S. Federal District Court Judge
James A. Redden
sentenced Shannon to 20 years in prison--a substantial upward departure from sentencing guidelines. In sentencing her, Redden called her a terrorist. The sentence was set to begin only after Shannon's 10-year incarceration for shooting Tiller is completed.
Her daughter, Angela Shannon (born ca. 1974), was prosecuted for sending a death threat in 1993 to George Woodward, a Milwaukee doctor who performed abortions. (The letter arrived on March 3, 1993 — a week before the murder of David Gunn.) The elder Shannon attempted to take the blame for the death threat, but in view of Angela's fingerprint
s having been found on the letter, Angela was convicted and sentenced to 46 months' incarceration in 1997.
In 1998, Shelley Shannon filed a lawsuit contending that the sewage system in the Kansas prison was inadequate, and that sewage backups created unhealthful conditions for the inmates. Her lawsuit was dismissed by Federal District Court Judge Kathryn Vratil in Kansas City, Kansas
. The dismissal was upheld by a 2-1 vote of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
.
Gun
A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...
, saboteur
Saboteur
A saboteur is someone who commits sabotage.It may also refer to:*Morituri , a 1965 film also known as The Saboteur*Saboteur , a card game by Frederic Moyersoen, published in 2004...
, and rhetoric
Rhetoric
Rhetoric is the art of discourse, an art that aims to improve the facility of speakers or writers who attempt to inform, persuade, or motivate particular audiences in specific situations. As a subject of formal study and a productive civic practice, rhetoric has played a central role in the Western...
ian from Grants Pass, Oregon
Grants Pass, Oregon
-Rogue River:The Rogue River runs through Grants Pass.-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 23,003 people, 9,376 households, and 5,925 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 9,885 housing units at an average density of 1,303.3 per square mile . By 2008,...
. She shot Dr. George Tiller
George Tiller
George Richard Tiller, MD was an American physician from Wichita, Kansas. He was the medical director of a clinic in Wichita, Women's Health Care Services, one of only three nationwide which provided abortions after the 21st week of pregnancy .Pro-life group Operation Rescue kept a daily vigil...
in both arms, outside his abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
clinic in Wichita
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, on August 19, 1993. She is serving her sentence at FCI Waseca
Federal Correctional Institution, Waseca
The Federal Correctional Institution, Waseca is a United States federal prison in Waseca, Minnesota. It is a low security prison housing female inmates. The site was converted into a prison after formerly serving as a University of Minnesota campus until 1992. The prison was co-ed for a few...
, a prison in Minnesota, and her projected release date is November 7, 2018.
Attempted murder of George Tiller
On August 19, 1993, Shelley Shannon shot Dr. George TillerGeorge Tiller
George Richard Tiller, MD was an American physician from Wichita, Kansas. He was the medical director of a clinic in Wichita, Women's Health Care Services, one of only three nationwide which provided abortions after the 21st week of pregnancy .Pro-life group Operation Rescue kept a daily vigil...
in both arms, outside his Wichita
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
clinic.
At the time she shot Tiller, Shannon had been a part of the anti-abortion movement for at least five years. She had written in support of Michael Griffin
Michael F. Griffin
On March 10, 1993, Michael Frederick Griffin murdered Dr. David Gunn in Pensacola, Florida in the United States. This was the first documented assassination of an OB-GYN, to prevent a doctor from performing abortions....
, the murderer of Dr. David Gunn
David Gunn (doctor)
David Gunn was an American physician. He received his bachelors degree from Vanderbilt University and earned his M.D. at the University of Kentucky. Gunn moved to Brewton, Alabama, after his residency, choosing to provide OB/GYN and abortion services in rural America.Gunn was murdered in...
, calling Griffin "the awesomest, greatest hero of our time." Tiller's Wichita clinic was the site of frequent demonstrations and incidents of direct action by those opposed to abortion
Pro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
rights and of counter-demonstrations by abortion rights activists. Under cover of such a fracas, Shannon shot Tiller with a semiautomatic pistol.
Tiller was later assassinated on May 31, 2009, by Scott Roeder.
Trial and imprisonment
At her trial in state court, Shannon testified that there was nothing immoral about trying to kill Tiller. The jurors deliberated for an hour. They convicted her of attempted murderAttempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.-Today:In English criminal law, attempted murder is the crime of more than merely preparing to commit unlawful killing and at the same time having a specific intention to cause the death of human being under the Queen's Peace...
. She was sentenced to 11 years in prison.
While incarcerated in Lansing, Kansas
Lansing, Kansas
Lansing is a city situated along the Missouri River in the eastern part of Leavenworth County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 11,265...
, Shannon signed the Army of God's statement in support of the actions of Paul Jennings Hill
Paul Jennings Hill
Paul Jennings Hill was the first person in the United States to be executed for murdering a doctor who performed abortions.-Early life:...
.
On June 4, 1995, she pleaded guilty to setting fires at several abortion clinics in Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
and Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. She had been indicted
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
by federal grand juries
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
on 30 counts in connection with fires and butyric acid
Butyric acid
Butyric acid , also known under the systematic name butanoic acid, is a carboxylic acid with the structural formula CH3CH2CH2-COOH. Salts and esters of butyric acid are known as butyrates or butanoates...
attacks at nine clinics. Charges included arson
Arson
Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...
, interference with commerce by force and interstate travel in aid of racketeering.
On September 9, 1995, U.S. Federal District Court Judge
United States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
James A. Redden
James A. Redden
James Anthony "Jim" Redden Jr. is a judge and politician from the U.S. state of Oregon. Since 1980, he has served as a Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon...
sentenced Shannon to 20 years in prison--a substantial upward departure from sentencing guidelines. In sentencing her, Redden called her a terrorist. The sentence was set to begin only after Shannon's 10-year incarceration for shooting Tiller is completed.
Her daughter, Angela Shannon (born ca. 1974), was prosecuted for sending a death threat in 1993 to George Woodward, a Milwaukee doctor who performed abortions. (The letter arrived on March 3, 1993 — a week before the murder of David Gunn.) The elder Shannon attempted to take the blame for the death threat, but in view of Angela's fingerprint
Fingerprint
A fingerprint in its narrow sense is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. In a wider use of the term, fingerprints are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human hand. A print from the foot can also leave an impression of friction ridges...
s having been found on the letter, Angela was convicted and sentenced to 46 months' incarceration in 1997.
In 1998, Shelley Shannon filed a lawsuit contending that the sewage system in the Kansas prison was inadequate, and that sewage backups created unhealthful conditions for the inmates. Her lawsuit was dismissed by Federal District Court Judge Kathryn Vratil in Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City is the third-largest city in the state of Kansas and is the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, and is the third largest city in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The city is part of a consolidated city-county government known as the "Unified...
. The dismissal was upheld by a 2-1 vote of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Colorado* District of Kansas...
.