James Charles Kopp

James Charles Kopp (born in Pasadena, California on August 2, 1954) is an American citizen who was convicted in 2003 for the 1998 sniper-style slaying of Dr. Barnett Slepian, an Amherst, New York physician who performed abortions. Prior to his capture, Kopp was on the FBI's list of Ten Most Wanted Fugitives. On June 7, 1999 he had become the 455th fugitive placed on the list by the FBI. He was affiliated with anti-abortion activist group "The Lambs of Christ." He has been referred to as a terrorist by the National Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism.

Early Life
James Kopp was raised Lutheran, but later converted to Roman Catholicism.

The Murder
On October 23, 1998, at approximately 10:00 p.m., Dr. Barnett Slepian was standing in the kitchen of his home in Amherst, New York. Kopp fired a single rifleshot from a nearby wooded area, which entered the Slepian home through a rear window. Dr. Slepian was a well-known obstetrician-gynecologist who performed abortions at a women's clinic in Buffalo, New York. He also maintained a private medical practice in an office in Amherst, New York.

Fugitive
Kopp fled to Mexico under an assumed name and later to Ireland. While staying in Ireland, Kopp began practicing Traditionalist Catholicism. After his arrest, his fellow parishioners at the Society of Saint Pius X's Chapel in Dún Laoghaire were shocked to learn his real identity

He eventually went on to live in France.

On March 29, 2001, Kopp was arrested by French law enforcement in the French town of Dinan, Brittany. The United States requested his extradition and Attorney General John Ashcroft promised that the death penalty would not be sought, handed down or applied, a prerequisite according to the extradition treaty between France and the US, despite the fact that the murder charge Kopp faced was a state charge over which Ashcroft had no jurisdiction and that he did so over the objections of New York State attorney general Eliot Spitzer and Erie County district attorney Frank Clark, both of whom sought the death penalty. The instruction chamber of the Rennes court of appeals ruled in favor of extradition; however, Kopp appealed the ruling.

Extradition
In May 2002, Kopp waived all possible appeals in France and agreed to return to the US, which he did in June.

Trial and Conviction
On March 11, 2003, Kopp surprised observers by waiving his right to a jury trial. Based upon an agreement between the defense and prosecution, (Erie County Assistant District Attorney, Joseph Maruszak and defense attorney, Bruce Barkett) Erie County Judge Michael D'Amico would be required to find Kopp guilty or innocent based on a single document of facts. In addition, the judge could not consider lesser charges; he would have to find Kopp guilty or not guilty of second-degree murder. Since Kopp had confessed his role in the shooting to police (claiming that he only meant to wound Slepian) Judge D'Amico found him guilty and sentenced him to the maximum, 25 years to life, on May 9, 2003, telling Kopp "It's clear the act is premeditated; there is no doubt about it. You made an attempt to avoid responsibility for the act. What may appear righteous to you is immoral to someone else" (see ). The Appellate Division, Fourth Department, upheld the conviction on July 7, 2006 (Shawn P. Hennessy, attorney for respondent and Timothy Murphy, attorney for appellant).

Appeal to Federal Court
Kopp has appealed to Federal court. The trial is now underway and Judge Richard Arcara was selected to preside. Arcara has limited what Kopp can say on the stand and also has prohibited Kopp from showing pictures of aborted fetuses. As in any case, there is also a limitation to witness' accounts. If found guilty in Federal court, Kopp faces a mandatory life sentence. Kopp is accused of violating the Clinic Entrances Act and using a weapon in the murder of Dr. Barnett Slepian. Kopp has chosen to act as his own attorney. On day two of Kopp's federal trial during cross examination, Kopp attempted to have the court reporter of his previous state trial read back statements pertaining to abortion. Judge Arcara precluded this, holding that under the Federal Rules of Evidence Kopp is barred from stating anti-abortion, religious or moral reasoning for his actions. Kopp had attempted to tell the jury why he did what he did because he claims it pertains to the issue of intent.

Kopp was also charged in U.S. District Court in Buffalo on a count of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. Kopp has dismissed his court-assigned attorney, an assistant federal public defender, and represented himself. On June 20th, 2007 he was sentenced to life-imprisonment plus ten years for illegal use of a firearm. Additionally, the court ordered his belongings auctioned off in order to pay $2.6 million to Slepian's family. U.S. District Judge Richard Arcara told Kopp as the end of the trial: "“You served as prosecutor, judge, jury and executioner. You decided that you know better than any law.”."

In opening statement to the jury, Kopp said that although Slepian's death was "a full-bore, 100 percent tragedy" it wasn't murder because it was not malicious or premeditated. He did acknowledge he planned the shooting for a year and fired a high-powered rifle with telescopic sights, but he only meant to wound the doctor (to keep him from performing abortions). Pre-meditation, according to Kopp means that you:

"Shoot them in the head, blow up a car, riddle their body with bullets like they do in the movies. That's how you kill someone"

Other crimes?
It is possible that the killing of Slepian was not Kopp's only crime. The FBI notes "(t)he shooting was similar to shootings in Rochester, New York, and three Canadian cities during the fall of 1997, in which abortion doctors were shot in their homes." Kopp has been charged by Canadian authorities in the 1995 shooting of Ontario doctor Hugh Short, one of a string of Remembrance Day shootings (see ).

Allies on the Lamm
Kopp had not been evading justice on his own. He received help from sympathetic anti-abortion activists Loretta Marra and Dennis Malvasi, who pled guilty to one count of conspiracy in helping Kopp avoid capture. On August 21, 2003, they were sentenced to time served, and released.