Texas woman charged with murder for self-induced abortion, prosecutors sued

A Texas woman who spent two nights in jail after being charged with murder for performing a self-induced abortion has sued prosecutors at the U.S.-Mexico border, who launched a criminal case that was later dropped.

Lizelle Gonzalez filed the lawsuit in federal court Thursday, a month after the Texas State Bar fined and disciplined the Starr County rural district attorney over the 2022 case. Gonzalez was charged with murder by “individual self-inflicted death.” ——Artificial abortion. “

Under abortion restrictions in Texas and other states, women seeking abortions are protected from criminal charges.

The lawsuit claims Gonzalez was harmed by the arrest and subsequent media coverage. She is seeking $1 million in damages.

“The consequences of Defendants’ unlawful and unconstitutional conduct have forever changed Plaintiffs’ lives,” the lawsuit states.

Starr County District Attorney Gocha Ramirez said Friday that he had not yet been served with the lawsuit and declined to comment. Starr County Judge Eloy Vera, the county’s top elected official, also declined to comment.

According to the lawsuit, Gonzalez was using misoprostol, one of two drugs used for medical abortion, when she was 19 weeks pregnant. Misoprostol is also used to treat stomach ulcers.

After taking the medication, Gonzalez underwent an obstetric check-up at the hospital emergency room and was discharged because of abdominal pain. The next day, she came back with bleeding and found no fetal heartbeat. Doctors performed a caesarean section and delivered a stillborn baby.

The lawsuit alleges the hospital violated the patient’s privacy rights when it reported the abortion to the district attorney’s office, which then conducted its own investigation and filed murder charges against Gonzalez.

Gonzalez’s attorney, Cecilia Garza, said the prosecution went ahead even though prosecutors knew women who had abortions were exempt from murder charges under state law.

Ramirez announced the charges were being dropped days after the woman’s arrest, but not before she spent two nights in jail and was named a murder suspect.

In February, Ramirez reached a settlement with the State Bar of Texas, agreeing to pay a $1,250 fine and have his license suspended for 12 months. He told The Associated Press at the time that he “made a mistake” and agreed to accept the punishment because it would keep his office running and allow him to continue prosecuting cases.