On May 31, 2009, George Tiller, an American physician from Wichita, Kansas, who was one of the few doctors in the United States to perform late terminations of pregnancy, was murdered by Scott Roeder, an anti-abortion extremist.

In November 2009, Roeder publicly confessed to the killing, telling the Associated Press that he had shot Tiller because "preborn children's lives were in imminent danger.

"[6][7] Roeder was found guilty of first-degree murder and two counts of aggravated assault on January 29, 2010,[8] and sentenced on April 1, 2010, to life imprisonment without any chance of parole for 50 years.

Tiller was shot in the head at point blank range; he was wearing body armor, as he had been since 1998, when the FBI told him he was being targeted by anti-abortion militants.

[11] Calling the murder "an abhorrent act of violence", U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced, Federal law enforcement is coordinating with local law enforcement officials in Kansas on the investigation of this crime, and I have directed the United States Marshals Service to offer protection to other appropriate people and facilities around the nation.

[23][24] Prior to the shooting, Roeder was not among the people monitored as potential threats by some abortion rights groups, including the state chapter of the National Organization for Women.

[26] In the six months before Roeder's arrest, he said, he had worked for an airport shuttle service, a party-rental shop, a convenience store and a property management enterprise.

Police officers searching his car discovered explosive charges, a fuse cord, a pound of gunpowder and nine-volt batteries in the trunk.

He filed notice of appeal and was represented by a state-funded appellate attorney who challenged the basis of the original search that found the bomb components.

[30][31][32][33][34] According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Roeder belonged to the sovereign citizen movement, which believes that virtually all existing government in the United States is illegitimate.

[39] On June 2, 2009, Lindsey Roeder gave an interview to Anderson Cooper of CNN about when and why her husband became radicalized: It was about 1991–92 when he basically couldn't cope with everyday life.

[40][41][42] Leach published the Army of God manual, which advocates the killing of the providers of abortion and contains bomb-making instructions, in the January 1996 issue of his magazine.

Ebecher, who went by the nom de guerre "Wolfgang Anacon," added that he believed Roeder held "high moral convictions in order to carry out this act.

"[45] In 2007, someone who identified himself as Scott Roeder posted on the website of the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue that "Tiller is the concentration camp 'Mengele' of our day and needs to be stopped before he and those who protect him bring judgment upon our nation."

[23] The cell phone number for Operation Rescue's senior policy advisor, convicted clinic bomb plotter Cheryl Sullenger, was found on the dashboard of Scott Roeder's car.

[48]The American Jewish Congress stated in a press release that Tiller's murder "exemplifies criminal anarchy, not legitimate protest.

The gunman in the military recruiting center attack, Abdul Hakim Mujahid Muhammad, was black, a Muslim convert, anti-military, and anti-American.

[65]James Taranto of The Wall Street Journal found fault with this view, claiming that its proponents failed to acknowledge that the crimes were different in nature and, therefore, in public import.

The murder of Martin Luther King was bigger news, and is a more important part of history, than any individual lynching, even though both were atrocious crimes spurred by similar ideological motives.

In this view, major media outlets "relegate Mr. Roeder's religious motivation to the margins, while all play up Mr. Muhammad's connections to Islam.

The church members held signs that read "God sent the shooter", "Abortion is bloody murder", and "Baby Killer in Hell".

[80] Judge Warren Wilbert ruled on January 8, 2010, that he would allow Roeder's defense team to argue for a voluntary manslaughter conviction, which in Kansas is defined as killing with "an unreasonable but honest belief that circumstances existed that justified deadly force.

"[81] Jury selection was scheduled to begin Monday, January 11, 2010, but was delayed after prosecutors challenged the judge's decision to allow the defense to build a case for a lesser charge.

[83] The defense had asked the court to hear the testimony of the former Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline and Barry Disney, a current member of that office.

At the outset, he admitted to killing Tiller, defending his act as an attempt to save unborn children and giving his views on abortion.

Under questioning by his attorney, he attempted to describe abortion practices in detail but was repeatedly halted by objections based on his lack of medical expertise.

According to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision, the "hard 50" can still be imposed, but the finding that the circumstances of the crime justify the sentence must be made by a jury, rather than by the judge.

Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett said that prosecutors made the decision not to convene a new jury or ask for the reinstatement of the "hard 50", because of Roeder's age, his worsening health, and the likelihood that he will die in prison before the 25 years pass.

[88] In 2013, Roeder was placed in solitary confinement for 45 days for issuing further threats of violence during a telephone interview with anti-abortion activist David Leach.

[89][90][91] He referenced the work of Julie Burkhart, Founder and CEO of Trust Women Foundation to open an abortion providing facility in Wichita.