PUBLISHER'S NOTE: In recent years, I have taken on the theme of 'criminalizing reproduction' - a natural theme for a Blog concerned with flawed science in its myriad forms - as I am utterly appalled by the current movement in the United States (and some other countries) emboldened by the overturning of Roe Versus Wade, towards imprisoning and conducting surveillance on women and their physicians and others who help them secure a safe abortion, on the basis of sham science (or any other basis). I can’t remember the source, but agree totally with the sentiment that control over their reproductive lives is far too important to women in America - or anywhere else - so they can participate equally in the economic and social life of their nations without fear for loss their freedom at the hands of political opportunists and fanatics. (Far too many of those those around these days.) '
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog.
——————————————————————
PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Eleven states have laws that redefine “person” to include embryos and fetuses; five more states, Texas included, do the same in their criminal codes. As many have written, giving full legal rights and protections to fertilized eggs, embryos, and fetuses is the anti-abortion movement's highest goal. And this case is a clear and present step in the climb to that zenith. During this legislative session, lawmakers in at least 15 states introduced bills that would allow prosecutors to bring charges of homicide if a pregnant person has an abortion. In 12 of those states, this would be a capital offense. None of the bills passed. And while prosecutors across the country have long used other laws to prosecute abortions and pregnancy outcomes, these bills and the Texas prosecution serve to push the boundary of what was once unthinkable: charging women with homicide for having an abortion. If this man’s actions warrant a capital murder charge, it lays a very dangerous foundation. So-called “abortion abolitionists”—the people behind these dangerous bills—believe deeply that abortion is murder, and the women who get them are murderers. We cannot let the horrific facts of this case be manipulated to further their dangerous agenda."
-------------------------------------------------
COMMENTARY: "The Abortion Prosecution No One Is Talking About, by Dana Sussman, published by Contrarian, on July 15, 2025. (Dana Sussman is the senior vice president of Pregnancy Justice, a legal defense and advocacy nonprofit that advances and defends the rights of pregnant people, no matter if they give birth, experience a pregnancy loss, or have an abortion.)
SUB-HEADING: "A test case in Texas shows the next frontier for "abortion abolitionists": homicide charges."
GIST: A Texas man is facing a capital murder charge for allegedly slipping abortion medication in his girlfriend's drink, causing her to lose her pregnancy at six weeks. This is a heinous act by any measure, but what it shouldn't be is a capital offense.
Texas defines a “person” to include an embryo or fetus throughout its criminal code, and the death penalty is available in murder charges in specific situations—including when a victim is under 10 years old. In this case, by Texas’ definition, the victim is a 6-week-old embryo.
While we don’t know all the facts of the case, the state very clearly doesn’t count as a victim the woman who was given medication without her knowledge or consent, had her bodily autonomy violated, and suffered a physical injury in addition to a deep emotional trauma. She’s just a footnote in this case.
Texas is also among 38 states that have feticide laws, a unique homicide charge for “killing a fetus” through an injury to a pregnant woman. Notably, that is not the charge here.
Similarly, the prosecutor is not bringing charges of assault against the woman for the harm done to her body.
As far as we know, this is the first case involving capital murder charges for an unconsented-to abortion, and pursuing it this way is an entirely strategic move.
No one will rush to defend this man's actions, and these charges are not provoking national outrage. But the stakes here could not be higher. Make no mistake, women are next.
Eleven states have laws that redefine “person” to include embryos and fetuses; five more states, Texas included, do the same in their criminal codes.
As many have written, giving full legal rights and protections to fertilized eggs, embryos, and fetuses is the anti-abortion movement's highest goal. And this case is a clear and present step in the climb to that zenith.
During this legislative session, lawmakers in at least 15 states introduced bills that would allow prosecutors to bring charges of homicide if a pregnant person has an abortion. In 12 of those states, this would be a capital offense.
None of the bills passed.
And while prosecutors across the country have long used other laws to prosecute abortions and pregnancy outcomes, these bills and the Texas prosecution serve to push the boundary of what was once unthinkable: charging women with homicide for having an abortion.
If this man’s actions warrant a capital murder charge, it lays a very dangerous foundation.
So-called “abortion abolitionists”—the people behind these dangerous bills—believe deeply that abortion is murder, and the women who get them are murderers.
We cannot let the horrific facts of this case be manipulated to further their dangerous agenda."
The entire store can be read at:
the-abortion-prosecution-no-one-is
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
———————————————————————————————
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;
—————————————————————————————————
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;
-------------------------------------------------
