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BOTOX DOC HAS OTHER JOB, SAY PRO-LIFERS

When Dr. Sheo Sharma held an open house on December 1 for his new cosmetic surgery business in Owings Mills, pro-lifers were there to let his guests know that botox treatments and spider vein therapy weren’t his only game.

Standing in front of Painters Mill Executive Office Park, which houses Sharma’s office, the pro-lifers displayed signs reading, “Supporting Sharma Equals Supporting Abortion” and “Sharma Does Abortions Also.”

Letting potential cosmetic surgery customers know the dark side of Dr. Sharma’s operations was part of an ongoing campaign against the abortionist that began five years ago.

In the summer of 2000, sisters Chrissie and Mary Walsh assembled about 20 fellow teens to begin prayer vigils in front of Sharma’s Femi-Care Surgery Center, which was then located near their school, Franklin High, in Reisterstown.

Adults from Sacred Heart Church in Glyndon soon joined the Saturday morning vigils.

In September 2002 Sharma moved to his present location, at the corner of Painters Mill and Music Fair roads.

“It didn’t take us long to find out where he went,” says Chrissie’s and Mary’s mom, Irene Walsh.

Now, the pro-lifers pray the rosary every Saturday morning between 7:30 and 8:15, when young women are arriving for scheduled abortions.

Because Sharma’s office is hidden from view where they stand outside the office park, the pro-lifers are seldom able to make contact with the women going in for abortions.

As a result, says Mrs. Walsh, “Our presence has changed from a low-key approach to a public witness approach.”

The pro-lifers carry signs saying “Stop Abortion Now” and “Face It - Abortion Kills,” and hand out literature to pedestrians, many of whom are men heading for the nearby Owings Mills metro station.

The public’s reaction to them is “largely positive, judging from the honks,” says Irene, “but we do get some negative reactions – people rolling down their windows, yelling and cussing.”

During the December 1 demonstration, Irene’s daughter, Mary, now 22, went in to the open house and was surprised to see a familiar face:  she recognized Dr. Sharma’s daughter, who had been a fellow student in her ballet classes years ago.

A check of the phone book by Mrs. Walsh revealed that Dr. Sharma is practically her neighbor; his home on Timber Grove Road, in an upscale development in Reisterstown, is only a mile or two from her own home in north Owings Mills.

An investigation of Maryland Health Claims Arbitration Office records by Defend Life in 2000, however, helped strip away Dr. Sharma’s veneer of respectability.

The HCA Office records showed nine claims against the OB/GYN over a 15-year period.  They included charges by claimants that his negligent or substandard treatment contributed to the death of their newborn, or caused severe brain damage or other serious permanent injuries.

Two women claimed injuries during abortions that allegedly inflicted great pain and suffering, required major corrective surgery, and resulted in permanent damage.  

As a consequence of one case in which a baby died five days after delivery, Maryland’s Board of Physician Quality Assurance placed Dr. Sharma on a year’s probation.

Speculating on the effectiveness of the pro-lifers’ prayer vigils, Mrs. Walsh says, “I’m thinking we have had some impact on Sharma’s business.

“I don’t know what went into his decision to move his office – but it is possible that we were a factor.”