Arrest warrant issued for New York doctor indicted in Louisiana for prescribing abortion pill
An arrest warrant has been issued for a New York doctor indicted on Friday by a Louisiana grand jury for allegedly prescribing abortion pills online to a pregnant minor in the Deep South state, which has one of the strictest near-total abortion bans in the country.
Related video above: In June, the Supreme Court voted to preserve access to abortion medication Mifepristone
Grand jurors at the District Court for the Parish of West Baton Rouge unanimously issued an indictment against Dr. Margaret Carpenter; her company, Nightingale Medical, PC; and the minor's mother. All three were charged with criminal abortion by means of abortion-inducing drugs, a felony.
In addition to Carpenter, an arrest warrant was issued for the mother, who has not been publicly identified to protect the identity of the minor. District Attorney Tony Clayton told The Associated Press that the mother turned herself into police on Friday.
The case appears to be the first instance of criminal charges against a doctor accused of sending abortion pills to another state, at least since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022 and opened the door for states to have strict anti-abortion laws.
바카라 게임 웹사이트We expect Dr. Carpenter to come to Louisiana and answer to these charges, and if 12 people (a jury) think she's innocent then, let it go," Clayton said.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a video posted on social media, 바카라 게임 웹사이트I will never, under any circumstances, turn this doctor over to the state of Louisiana under any extradition requests,바카라 게임 웹사이트 signaling a potential legal battle between the states.
Last year, the Port Allen, Louisiana, woman requested abortion medication online from Carpenter for her daughter, whose age has not been specified. Clayton said the request was made through a questionnaire only and no consultation with the girl.
A 바카라 게임 웹사이트cocktail of pills바카라 게임 웹사이트 was mailed to the woman who directed her daughter to take the pill, Clayton said.
After taking the drug, the girl experienced a medical emergency while alone, called 911 and was transported to the hospital where she was treated. While responding to the emergency, a police officer learned about the pills and under further investigation found that a doctor in New York state had supplied the drugs and turned their findings over to Clayton's office.
It is unclear how far along the girl was in her pregnancy.
바카라 게임 웹사이트The (adult) mother has since been arrested, but the other person we believe is just as culpable here is the person who sat in an office, wrapped a box of pills, put a stamp on the box and mailed it to the state of Louisiana for a child to take,바카라 게임 웹사이트 Clayton said.
Carpenter was under similar allegations of sending pills to that state. That case did not involve criminal charges.
Carpenter did not immediately return a message from the AP.
The indictment comes just months after Louisiana became the first state with a law reclassifying both mifepristone and misoprostol as 바카라 게임 웹사이트controlled dangerous substances.바카라 게임 웹사이트 The drugs are still allowed, but medical personnel must take extra steps to access them.
Under the legislation, if someone knowingly possesses either medication without a valid prescription, they could be fined up to $5,000 and sent to jail for one to five years. The law carves out protections for pregnant women who obtain the drug without a prescription .
바카라 게임 웹사이트I have said it before and I will say it again: We will hold individuals accountable for breaking the law,바카라 게임 웹사이트 Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, a Republican, said in a statement on Friday.
Abortion opponents and reproductive rights groups alike flooded social media scrutinizing the indictment.
바카라 게임 웹사이트We cannot continue to allow forced birth extremists to interfere with our ability to access necessary healthcare, Chasity Wilson, executive director of the Louisiana Abortion Fund, said in a statement. 바카라 게임 웹사이트Extremists hope this case will cause a chilling effect, further tying the hands of doctors who took an oath to care for their patients.바카라 게임 웹사이트
Since the fall of Roe v. Wade, Louisiana has had a near-total abortion ban, without any exceptions for rape or incest. Under the law, physicians convicted of performing an illegal abortion, including one with pills, face up to 15 years in prison, $200,000 in fines and the loss of their medical license.
바카라 게임 웹사이트Make no mistake, since Roe v Wade was overturned, we바카라 게임 웹사이트ve witnessed a disturbing pattern of interference with women바카라 게임 웹사이트s rights,바카라 게임 웹사이트 the Abortion Coalition of Telemedicine, where Carpenter is one of the founders, said in a statement. 바카라 게임 웹사이트It바카라 게임 웹사이트s no secret the United States has a history of violence and harassment against abortion providers, and this state-sponsored effort to prosecute a doctor providing safe and effective care should alarm everyone.바카라 게임 웹사이트
Friday바카라 게임 웹사이트s indictment could be the first direct test of New York바카라 게임 웹사이트s shield laws, which are who use telehealth to provide abortion pills to patients in states where abortion is banned. New York Attorney General Letitia James said 바카라 게임 웹사이트we will not allow bad actors to undermine our providers바카라 게임 웹사이트 ability to deliver critical care.바카라 게임 웹사이트
바카라 게임 웹사이트This cowardly attempt out of Louisiana to weaponize the law against out-of-state providers is unjust and un-American,바카라 게임 웹사이트 James added.
Pills have become the of abortion in the U.S., accounting for nearly two-thirds of them by 2023. They바카라 게임 웹사이트re also at the center of political and legal action over abortion. In January, a judge let three states continue to for how one of the drugs usually involved can be prescribed.
___
Mulvihill reported from Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Associated Press reporter Michael Hill in Albany, New York, also contributed.
