Pro-life martyr memorialized today

Fellow pro-life actvists will gather on the afternoon of September 13 in Owosso, Michigan, to mourn fellow prolifer James Pouillon who was gunned down in front of the small town's high school on the morning of September 11. Members of Citizens for a Pro-life Society, based in Michigan, will hold a prayer vigil near the spot where the 63 year-old former General Motors employee was shot, apparently by Harlan J. Drake - a local 33 year-old truckdriver. Similarly, mourners will gather on the West Lawn of the White House in Washington DC and recall the death of Pouillon during a 27-hour prayer vigil that will end on September 14. According to a news release from the Christian Defense Coalition, Pouillon had himself planned to attend the vigil.

Known as the “sign man”, Pouillon, an activist in the pro-life cause for some 20 years, was wont to stand in front of the high school displaying large posters decrying abortion that included graphic images of aborted fetuses. Said Judy Climer, leader of a prominent prolife group in nearby Flint, Michigan, "I knew him well. He told me one God put in his hear a passion for the little babies that have the right to be born," Climer averred that her friend was even willing to die for his belief.

Police have arrested Harlan, while local police chief Mike Compeau suggested a motive for the killing, saying of Harlan “He didn't think kids should have to look at that,”. Drake allegedly shot Pouillon, who required a portable oxygen bottle for breathing and a walker for ambulation, several times before speeding off in his pickup truck. A high school boy, Alex Garcia, sped to Pouillon's aid but found him unresponsive, Garcia called for emergency assistance. Pouillon had just dropped off his grandaughter for classes at the high school. According to reports, Drake allegedly shot Pouillon at 7:20 AM on September 11 with a .45 calibre pistol as students looked on.

Drake had also allegedly shot to death 61 year-old Michael Fuoss that morning, the owner of a local gravel pit. The motive of that killing remains unclear. Friends and family are mourning the two fallen men, who died violently in a town unused to violence. Owosso is the county seat of Shiawassee County and is otherwise know for its Steam Railroading Institute and annual festival of railroads, and as the birthplace of Thomas E. Dewey – a Michigander who went on to become governor of New York and a Republican presidential candidate.

A local Planned Parenthood leader, Lori Lamerand, was quoted by the Flint Journal as saying that she feared further violence. Said Lamerand “If this is related to his pro-life views, we find that tragic and do not endorse such actions in any way, shap or form.” Lamarenad went on to say that she fears retaliation for Pouillon's death.

A burly Vietnam War veteran, Pouillon was no stranger to harassment by onlookers, as well as several run-ins with the law. In 1994, he was arrested for disorderly conduct for protesting an anniversary celebration of the local Planned Parenthood clinic held by the First Congregational Church in Owosso. He was accused of shouting at parents entering the church “Don't take your kids to that church. They kill babies in there. They support abortion.” The Flint Journal published an extensive record of such offenses, none of them felonies, while no such record has been found for the ostensible shooter, Harlan Drake.

National pro-life leaders, such as Rev. Frank Pavone and Rev. Patrick Mahoney, have decried the murder, while some have already labelled him a martyr to their cause. Pouillon, over the course of his decades-long activities, was known to have borne the brunt of shouted insults and was at times doused with urine, condoms, and refuse.