Texas woman charged with murder for ‘self-induced abortion’
Police in Starr County on the Texas-Mexico border have arrested and charged a woman with murder for allegedly performing what they called a “self-induced abortion.”
The Starr County Sheriff's Office arrested 26-year-old Lizelle Herrera on Thursday.
The story was first reported by Valley Central. TPR confirmed Friday night that Herrera remains in the custody of the Starr County Sheriff’s Office with bond set at $500,000.
La Frontera Fund, a Rio Grande Valley-based abortion assistance fund, planned a protest for Saturday morning outside the Starr County Jail.
“This arrest is inhumane. We are demanding the immediate release of Lizelle Herrera.’ said Rockie Gonzalez, founder and board chair of Frontera Fund. “What is alleged is that she was in the hospital and had a miscarriage and divulged some information to hospital staff, who then reported her to the police.”
“This is a developing story and we don’t yet know all the details surrounding this tragic event, what we do know is that criminalizing pregnant people’s choices or pregnancy outcomes, which the state of Texas has done, takes away people’s autonomy over their own bodies, and leaves them with no safe options when they choose not to become a parent,” Gonzalez explained.
In September, Texas lawmakers passed Senate Bill 8, which bans the procedure as early as six weeks into a pregnancy — often before many people realize they're pregnant.
SB 8, the most restrictive ban on the procedure in the country, deputizes private citizens to sue anyone who performs an abortion or “aids and abets” a procedure.
“We want people to know that this type of legislation impacts low-income people of color communities the most when state legislators put restrictions on our reproductive rights,” Gonzales told TPR.
As legal challenges make their way through the courts, thousands of Texans have gone out of state to get abortions.
If I win the big jackpot in the lottery, I'll be providing transportation, food and lodging for any woman in Texas who needs to escape in order to get a safe and proper abortion. And eventually, I'm all but 100% certain we could make the effort self-sustaining with the money we'd win by countersuing those assholes.
Let's throw in a hypothetical:
- What if Ms Hererra had attempted this self-induced abortion, but the fetus survived, and the pregnancy was deemed to be fully viable?
- And let's say that the cops are dispatched to her house to arrest her for attempted murder, but she puts up an epic fight resisting.
- Are the cops authorized to use deadly force in order to compel Hererra's compliance?
- Would the cops then be liable on a charge for the wrongful death of the fetus?
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