BACKGROUND: (From a previous post on this Blog: (March 30 2023): "The Texas Tribune (Reporter Eleanor Klibanoff) reports that three Texas women are being sued by an ex-husband for wrongful death after assisting with an abortion by helping his ex-wife obtain the medications (read 'pills') to terminate her pregnancy - in what it calls, "the first lawsuit of its kind since Roe v Wade was overturned."..."Silva’s wife filed for divorce in May 2022, court records show, two months before the alleged abortion. The divorce was finalized in February. They share two daughters, the lawsuit said. The lawsuit relies heavily on screenshots from a group chat the ex-wife had with two friends seemingly seeking to help her terminate her pregnancy. Her friends expressed concern that Silva would “snake his way into your head.”
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog.
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NOTA BENE: "A trial in state court is set for May 13. (HL);
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PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Marcus Silva made seven requests for evidence from his ex-wife, including a copy of all communications she had with anyone—including the defendants—about efforts to acquire abortion-inducing drugs. He also sought all abortion-inducing drugs in her possession. Brittni Silva refused to turn over any evidence, citing concerns with potential prosecution. However, in October 2023, a trial court said she must turn them over, giving her 30 days to comply. She appealed. Holding that the trial court abused its discretion, the Houston-based appeals court said evidence Silva might have produced could be used to prosecute her under three separate federal statutes. One of the statutes, the Comstock Act, prohibits arranging for the transportation of abortion pills in interstate commerce. Though cases are rarely prosecuted under the Comstock Act, “there is no guaranteeing what future prosecutors will do,” the appeals court said.'
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STORY: "Texas Man Accusing Ex of Illegal Abortion Won’t Get Her Texts," by Correspondent Ryan Aurelio, published by Bloomberg Law, on April 9, 2024.
- KEY POINTS:
- The woman has a rightful fear of prosecution, court said
- Three of the woman’s friends—but not her—are defendants.
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GIST: "A Texas woman alleged to have obtained an illegal abortion through non-prescribed medication won’t need to produce evidence to her ex-husband, a Texas appeals court ruled, overturning a trial court in holding that she has a “reasonable fear of prosecution.”
The 14th Court of Appeals said a trial court’s order requiring the production of records has the potential to violate Brittni Silva’s Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. The evidence sought could “furnish a link in the chain of evidence needed to prosecute” Silva, the appeals court said.
Silva isn’t a party in this wrongful death lawsuit, and she hasn’t conceded in the case that she obtained an abortion or was even pregnant. Her ex-husband, Marcus Silva, sued three women he says helped his then-wife obtain medication to facilitate an abortion. The alleged termination is said to have happened in July 2022, when in Texas only a medical provider could prescribe medication for the purposes of an abortion. The state’s near-total abortion ban hadn’t yet taken effect.
Marcus Silva made seven requests for evidence from his ex-wife, including a copy of all communications she had with anyone—including the defendants—about efforts to acquire abortion-inducing drugs. He also sought all abortion-inducing drugs in her possession. Brittni Silva refused to turn over any evidence, citing concerns with potential prosecution.
However, in October 2023, a trial court said she must turn them over, giving her 30 days to comply. She appealed.
Holding that the trial court abused its discretion, the Houston-based appeals court said evidence Silva might have produced could be used to prosecute her under three separate federal statutes. One of the statutes, the Comstock Act, prohibits arranging for the transportation of abortion pills in interstate commerce.
Though cases are rarely prosecuted under the Comstock Act, “there is no guaranteeing what future prosecutors will do,” the appeals court said.
A trial in state court is set for May 13.
Brittni Silva is represented by Alex Wolf of Steptoe. Marcus Silva is represented by former Texas solicitor general Jonathan Mitchell and Texas state Rep. Briscoe Cain (R).
The case is In Re Brittni Silva, Tex. App., 14th Dist., No. 14-23-00834-cv, 4/9/24
The entire story can be read at:
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
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YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:
David Hammond, one of Broadwater's attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, "Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it's the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.
https://deadline.com/2021/11/alice-sebold-lucky-rape-conviction-overturned-anthony-broadwater-12348801
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SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
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YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:
David Hammond, one of Broadwater's attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, "Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it's the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.
https://deadline.com/2021/11/alice-sebold-lucky-rape-conviction-overturned-anthony-broadwater-12348801
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