Just keep walking/ Protesters heed Arapahoe ban on picketing homes

0 Comments | Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Jul 2, 2000 | by Barry Bortnick

ARAPAHOE COUNTY - About 25 anti-abortion protesters marched through the Huntington Estates neighborhood Saturday morning, complying with a newly passed law that stopped them from congregating outside a Planned Parenthood doctor's house and taunting him with insults.

Protest leader Bob Enyart led a quiet procession for more than an hour as neighbors, 12 Arapahoe County Sheriff's deputies and about a dozen reporters watched.

After repeated requests for help from exasperated residents in this upper middle-class neighborhood, the Arapahoe County Commission passed an ordinance Monday that outlawed "target picketing."

The anti-abortion protesters have used the tactic for more than seven years against Dr. Ed O'Loughlin, a physician who also works on a contract basis for Planned Parenthood in Denver.

The protesters would gather outside the doctor's home once a month. Since July 4, 1999, they have congregated in a cul-de-sac outside O'Loughlin's house every Saturday and on every holiday.

Though the ordinance prevents protesters from standing in front of the doctor's house, it allows them to march through the neighborhood. The law also limited the size of signs protesters could carry to three square feet. In the past, protesters have held large signs that displayed dismembered fetuses.

"I think this is great - I am happy they are moving," said Christina Tucker, who lives near the cul-de-sac. "Let 'em walk, walk, walk. Now they are just people walking around. It's a huge victory for the neighborhood."

A few protesters shouted warnings at O'Loughlin's house as they made several trips through the cul-de-sac.

"Turn away from this evil," one protester chanted.

"No neighborhood should be a shelter for a murderer," another yelled.

As the procession passed one house, a smiling neighbor asked the marchers if they were "sweating" in the morning heat.

"Not as much as you will be in Hell," a protester responded without missing a beat.

Most residents went about their normal business. Kids traveled the area on scooters and in-line skates. A neighbor did woodwork outside his garage, dogs scampered through the streets, and people planted flowers.

Meanwhile, deputies kept a close watch. A patrol truck followed the protesters to keep them moving, while one deputy videotaped the event.

"It went very well today," said Arapahoe County Sheriff's Capt. Phil Spence. "People were moving and the residents were protected. Those who demonstrated got the opportunity for their First Amendment rights."

The protesters showed no signs of letup despite the new law.

"This is God's work," said Dann Dalton, a Denver truck driver who took part in the protest along with his two young children. "They think this ordinance will end the problem, but now the entire neighborhood can enjoy the annoyance."

Enyart, who cautioned fellow protesters to keep moving to avoid being ticketed, said his group would stay the course "indefinitely."

"We will be here as long as he (O'Loughlin) is here," said Doug McBurney.

O'Loughlin, who spends Saturdays at Planned Parenthood, missed the day's protests. But his wife, Kate, who has endured the scene for years, watched the day's events from a neighbor's house. Her 10-year- old son stayed inside their home and played computer games.

Kate O'Loughlin said Saturday's protest was not typical. The protesters were well-behaved and quiet compared with previous outings, she said.

"They put on a good show," she said after the protest ended at about noon.

Like the protesters, Kate O'Loughlin does not plan to give in.

"My husband and I have committed our lives to making abortion safe," she said. "To us, abortion is not a dirty word. What happened today was an attempt at intimidation, but that is not going to happen, because they have picked on the wrong woman."

- Barry Bortnick covers general assignments and may be reached at (303)333-1180 or bortnick@gazette.com Edited by Mike Braham; Headline by Ron Dawson