Killer of US abortion doctor faces life

KANSAS CITY - The sentencing on Thursday of an anti-abortion activist who gunned down a Kansas doctor comes amid a bitter US debate over abortion that nearly derailed landmark healthcare reform legislation last month and is expected to remain a factor in US midterm elections.

Scott Roeder faces a minimum mandatory life sentence after his first-degree murder conviction for shooting one of the nation's few late-term abortion providers.

The 52-year-old Kansas City man's killing of Wichita doctor George Tiller last May has been a rallying point for both abortion opponents and abortion rights supporters. Both sides are eager to strengthen their positions politically after the heated healthcare debate.