Guilty verdict in murder of Kansas abortion doctor

KANSAS CITY (Reuters) - A man accused of gunning down one of America's few late-term abortion providers was found guilty of first-degree murder on Friday after he said he had to act to stop the doctor from performing more abortions.

Scott Roeder, 51, was convicted of first-degree murder and aggravated assault by a Kansas jury the deliberated for just over 30 minutes in a case that drew anti-abortion protesters from around the nation to rally in Roeder's support.

Roeder admitted that he stalked and shot to death Dr. George Tiller, 67, on May 31 last year as Tiller attended church in Wichita, Kansas. He argued in court that his actions were necessary to protect unborn babies.

"Abortions were being done every day," Roeder testified. "My honest belief was that if I didn't do something they would continue to die."

He is expected to be sentenced to life in prison at a hearing in March.

Tiller was long a top target of anti-abortion activists and had been shot and wounded before. He was one of only a few U.S. physicians willing to perform abortions late in pregnancy.

The case had galvanized activists on both sides of the abortion issue, which is one of the most contentious and politically divisive in the United States.

Anti-abortion activists had hoped the trial might result in a verdict of voluntary manslaughter, while abortion rights groups feared any verdict other than a first-degree murder conviction would encourage further violence against abortion providers.

Abortion rights supporters have called on federal authorities to press an investigation into a larger conspiracy by anti-abortion activists to commit violent acts against abortion providers.

(Editing by David Storey)