Police investigate Illinois Planned Parenthood fire as arson

By CLAIRE SAVAGE
Associated Press/Report for America

CHICAGO (AP) — Peoria police and fire officials are investigating a fire at a central Illinois Planned Parenthood clinic as arson, police said Tuesday. The incident occurred Sunday night, two days after Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law reproductive health care legislation to protect out-of-state abortion seekers. The measure added Illinois to the list of states that have placed legal reinforcements around the procedure after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. No patients or staff were inside during the fire, but it caused “significant damage” to the building, said Jennifer Welch, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Illinois in a statement.