A man who assaulted a protester outside a southern Oregon Planned Parenthood clinic on Tuesday ended up stabbed by the demonstrator, police said.
The incident occurred after Kailah L. Clair, 22, walked into the facility in Grants Pass, Ore. Witnesses told police that she kicked over protest signs, after which a demonstrator, named by police as Christopher R. Tolhurst, 54, pushed her.
The woman then returned with her father, Ted A. Clair, who pushed Tolhurst to the ground and punched him "numerous times" in the face, Lt. Dennis Ward told reporters.
That was when Tolhurst stabbed the elder Clair, The Associated Press quoted Ward as saying.
Clair received seven stab wounds to the abdomen and neck, according to The Oregonian newspaper.
Kailah Clair received small cuts to her right hand, according to the paper.
Tolhurst received bruises and swelling to the left side of his face, police told the Oregonian.
Tolhurst and the younger Clair were treated and released from the hospital but Ted Clair, 48, remained hospitalized with serious injuries, police told reporters.
No arrests have been made over the incident.
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Abortions not performed at clinic
Tolhurst had been carrying signs denouncing abortion and Planned Parenthood, according to The Associated Press.
But spokeswoman Sarah Mosely of the Planned Parenthood for Southwestern Oregon told the AP that clinic only provides health services and does not perform abortions.
"It just appears to be a tragic situation," she told the AP. "Our thoughts are with the people who have been injured and their loved ones."
Local resident Charlotte Cook said Tolhurst accosted people coming and going through the area.
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"It was an accident looking for a place to happen," she told the AP.
Cherie Adams told the news agency that the protester would shout obscenities at her when she passed by him, which has led her to change he route to work.
“He's been out there for months," she told the AP.
"He's screaming at people. I had a feeling something like this would happen,” the AP quoted her as saying.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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