Unsafe abortions
editDr. Abu Hayat was convicted by a Manhattan Court in 1993 for performing an illegal third trimester abortion at his clinic in Alphabet City. The doctor began the dilation and evacuation procedure which was not legal in the third trimester. The baby was born alive before the procedure could be completed. The baby was missing an arm that had been severed during the D&E. He cited Roe v. Wade when he appealed his conviction for assaulting the baby based on an argument that the baby had not yet been born when he attempted the procedure.[1]
Another patient was forced to leave the clinic halfway through a procedure after Dr. Hayat demanded more money that her husband could not afford to pay. The patient nearly died and was treated at a local hospital for severe infection caused by pieces of dismembered fetus being left in her uterus.[2][3] 17 year old Sophie McCoy died in 1990 from an infected uterine perforation after receiving an abortion at Dr. Hayat's clinic.[4]
In 1971 17 year old Becky Bell died from an infection after an unsafe abortion. She lived in Indiana where parental consent was required to have a safe and legal abortion. Laurence H. Tribe wrote in Abortion: The Clash of Absolutes that Bell's best friend said that Becky "couldn't bear telling" her parents and considered other alternatives like an out-of-state abortion.[5] It's not known if Becky attempted the abortion by herself but it was not done safely and she died from an infection. Her parents publicly campaigned against parental consent laws after her death.[6]
- Rosie Jimenez, an American woman who was the first recorded death due to an unsafe abortion after federal Medicaid funds for abortions were removed by the Hyde Amendment in 1977.
- Gerri Santoro, an American woman who died because of an unsafe abortion in 1964.
Fetal homicide laws
editGerardo Flores was convicted of two counts of capital murder in 2005 under Texas' fetal homicide law. His girlfriend Erica Basoria testified that she had asked him to step on her stomach because her attempts to induce miscarriage on herself had been unsuccessful.[7] Flores said he initially refused but she would not relent until he agreed. Flores admitted to police that he "accidentally, probably" hit Basoria in the face during a fight on the night of the miscarriage. Basoria told police that he was not abusive.[8] Texas' fetal homicide law did not allow charges against the mother because she had a right to terminate pregnancy, so only Flores was charged.[9]
In 2019 a woman in Alabama was indicted after she was shot in the stomach for intentionally causing the death of "unborn baby Jones by initiating a fight knowing she was five months pregnant". The charges were later dropped.[10][11]
- ^ Perez-Pena, Richard (1993-03-07). "Doctor in Abortion Case To Appeal Assault Count". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
- ^ Perez-Pena, Richard (1993-02-23). "East Village Doctor Convicted Of Performing Illegal Abortion". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
- ^ Perez-Pena, Richard (1993-06-15). "Prison Term For Doctor Convicted In Abortions". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
- ^ Myers, Steven Lee (1991-12-05). "Doctor Describes Death of a Girl Who Suffered Botched Abortion". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
- ^ Tribe, Laurence (1992). Abortion: The Clash of Absolutes (revised ed.). W. W. Norton & Company. p. 202. ISBN 978-0-393-30956-0. Archived from the original on April 20, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
- ^ Hunter, James Davison (1994-03-28). Before the Shooting Begins. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4391-0629-7.
A third illustration of how speech acts distort public communication is found in the use of 'narratives' or stories. One of the celebrated stores invoked by pro-choice activists is that of seventeen year old Becky Bell...'She died' as her father put it, 'because of a parental consent law that we didn't even know existed'.
- ^ Bradley, Gerard V. (2013). Keown, John; George, Robert P. (eds.). Reason, Morality, and Law: The Philosophy of John Finnis. Oxford University Press. p. 255.
- ^ "Unborn twins' death is legal complication". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2020-04-02.
- ^ "Lufkin man convicted of killing 2 fetuses filing appeal". ktre.com. 24 October 2011. Retrieved 2020-04-02.
- ^ Romo, Vanessa (2019-06-28). "Woman Indicted For Manslaughter After Death Of Her Fetus, May Avoid Prosecution". NPR. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
- ^ Szekely, Peter (2019-07-03). "Alabama prosecutor drops charges against woman who lost fetus after being shot". Reuters. Retrieved 2024-07-26.