July 4, 2007: Sepsis and Death after "Medication Abortion"

"Sabrina" Roe was 18 years old and 6.5 weeks pregnant in the summer of 2007. Pregnant for the first time, she went to an provider somewhere in the United States for a "medication abortion." She was given 200 mg of oral mifepristone, a drug that causes the placenta to deteriorate and causes the embryo to die for lack of oxygen and nutrition.

It's unclear if she was administered the second dose at the facility or was given it to take at home, but 2 days after the mifepristone she was administered 800 mgcg of misoprostol inside her cheek. This second drug is to cause the contractions that will expel the dead embryo.

For 2 or 3 days Sabrina experienced only moderate bleeding and cramping. However by the fifth day, she suffered chills, dizziness, abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting. Over the next day the symptoms only got worse, so Sabrina went to "her outpatient clinic" -- likely the abortion facility that had given her the drugs. In spite of her chills, they determined that she didn't have a fever. She had pain throughout her lower abdomen and pelvic tenderness. She was diagnosed with bacterial vaginosis, given a prescription for metronidazole and doxycycline, and sent home. 

Somehow they didn't make a connection between an infection in her vagina and the possibility that she was developing potentially fatal sepsis.

The following day she was in even worse condition, so at last the clinic sent her to the emergency room. Her blood pressures was a low 56/21 (normal is around 120/80) and a rapid heartbeat of 149 (normal is around 60-100). Though she still had no fever, she had an elevated white blood cell count (indicative of infection) and an elevated hematocrit of 60.1%, which can be a sign of dehydration. 

Staff at the ER performed an ultrasound and found a large amount of free fluid and a cystic mass in her pelvic cavity. Doctors performed an exploratory laparotomy and found about 2.5 liters of cloudy fluid in her pelvic cavity, fluid swelling of the fallopian tubes, and inflammation of her peritoneum (lining of the abdomen). 

They admitted Sabrina to the ICU, where she was treated with IV fluids and an intensive cocktail of antibiotics for presumed sepsis. On July 4, just 16 hours after being admitted to the emergency room, Sabrina went into cardio-respiratory arrest and died.

An autopsy found findings consistent with necrotizing endometritis and sepsis.

HT: killed-by-choice

Sources:

• "Clostridial Toxic Shock After Abortion," Obstetrics & Gynecology, November 2007
• FDA Adverse Events Reporting System

 

July 4, 1913: A tragic Independence Day

On July 4, 1913, 33-year-old Mary Goldstein died in Chicago from an abortion reportedly perpetrated by Minnie Bernstein.

Bernstein is identified only as "abortion provider", so she might have been a lay abortionist.

She was held by the Coroner, and indicted by the Grand Jury for felony murder on September 1, but the case never went to trial.

Note, please, that with overall public health issues such as doctors not using proper aseptic techniques, lack of access to blood transfusions and antibiotics, and overall poor health to begin with, there was likely little difference between the performance of a legal abortion and illegal practice, and the aftercare for either type of abortion was probably equally unlikely to do the woman much, if any, good.

In fact, due to improvements in addressing these problems, maternal mortality in general (and abortion mortality with it) fell dramatically in the 20th Century, decades before Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion across America.

Watch Tragic Independence Day on YouTube.

For more on pre-legalization abortion, see The Bad Old Days of Abortion

July 4, 1875: Bride-to-Be Dies on Wedding Day

"The community around Oyster Bay are greatly excited over an abortion case that has been brought to light." The woman in question was identified only as Miss Bertram.

Miss Bertram was engaged to a New York man. The wedding was to take place on July 4, 1875. However, she became pregnant before the wedding. She purchased an abortifacient which didn't have the effect she desired, so she took some other sort of abortifacient. 

This second abortifacient did the job, leading to the birth of a near-term infant, which was buried in a potato patch. 

Miss Bertram herself took ill and died a few days later -- mere hours before her scheduled wedding. The physician who was attending her declared the cause of death to be the abortion.

Miss Bertram's fiancé denied being the father of the dead baby. "There is a suspicion entertained of another young man". Police began an investigation into who he might be, and into who sold the young woman the fatal drugs.

Watch "Tragic Wedding Day" on YouTube.

Source: "A Case of Malpractice at Oyster Bay," The Brooklyn Eagle, June 26, 1875

July 3, 2016: Mother Finds Daughter Cold and Dead

Mega-kudos to the folks at Operation Rescue for the amazing research they've been doing into the death of Cree Erwin-Sheppard Independence Day weekend of. 2024.

I first became aware of this Planned Parenthood abortion death through a recording of the 911 call her mother made when she found her daughter cold and dead in a downstairs bedroom. 

Thanks to Operation Rescue's hard work, we are able to compare the redacted autopsy report originally provided by the Medical Examiner's office with the original, unredacted copy.

Let's look at exactly what they chose to remove.

On the cover page, under "Cause of Death," the redaction suddenly begins in the middle of the sentence.

The words redacted were "and uterine perforation status post early vacuum aspiration and intrauterine contraception placement." Thus, the procedure performed at the Planned Parenthood was blacked out.

Even more telling is what they didn't redact: "Complications of intrauterine pregnancy, including pulmonayr emboli related to uterine vein thrombosis." In other words, findings that could blame Cree's death on pregnancy were left visible. Only the words that make it clear that this pregnancy had been tampered with are blocked out.

Moving on to the "Investigative Summary."

The first and second redactions are bewildering to me.

The first redaction is Cree's obstetric history, "G2P1." This is an abbreviation for "Gravida 2 Para 1," or "Pregnant Twice, Given Birth Once."

Since Cree had already aborted this pregnancy, her obstetric history should have been G2P1A1 (Gravida 2 Para 1 Abortus 1). Omitting the A1 would imply that Cree had been pregnant, rather than post-abortive, at the time of her death.

The second redaction is "There is a past medical history of pregnancy induced hypertension with a previous pregnancy." That information, coupled with giving Cree's obstetric history as "G2P1," could be used to imply that Cree had died during her second pregnancy due to pregnancy-related hypertension.

The final information redacted from this paragraph is: "There was reported history of a recent early vacuum aspiration and uterine contraception placement on 06/30/2016. On July 2, 2016 Cree presented to the emergency department with persistent pelvic pain and new-onset nausa and vomiting, and was discharged with instructions for outpatient follow-up." Thus, the fact that Cree had undergone an abortion is hidden.

The next redaction is in the section describing the internal examination of the chest and abdomen.

The words "Approximately 250 cc of blood are in the retrouterine pouch," are blacked out. In other words, the Medical Examiner's office didn't want anybody to know that there was over 8 ounces of blood in the area behind Cree's uterus.

This is another piece of evidence that officials were deliberately hiding the fact that Cree had suffered a fatal abortion injury.

Moving along to the specific description of Cree's internal reproductive organs.

Right after the words, "The endrmetrial cavity is of normal postpartum configuration," they redacted "and is occupied by clotted blood. An intrauterine contraceptive device embedded within the clot material is identified."

So the fact that the inside of Cree's uterus was normal didn't warrant redaction, but the fact that her uterus was full of clotted blood surrounding an IUD was deemed worthy of blacking out. Again, the fact that a procedure, rather than the pregnancy it self, caused Cree's death is being swept under the rug.

Another sentence is allowed to start unredacted: "The myometrium appears thickened." I'm not clear on why that was left in. The following is then blacked out: "consistent with the reported history of recent pregnancy. A 4.0 cm full-thickness perforation of the posterior lower uterine segment is identified."

So the fact that Cree's uterus was consistent with a reported recent pregnancy is allowed to stand, but the fact that she had a 1 1/5-inch full-thickness tear in the lower back area of her uterus was redacted. The injury is being covered up.

Moving along to the "Examination and Investigative Findings," once again we see that "Complications of intrauterine pregnancy" isn't blacked out. Information allowing Cree's death to be blamed on the pregnancy is conveniently provided.

What's blacked out is, once again, evidence that it wasn't the pregnancy itself that killed Cree Erwin. The hole in her uterus, and the fact that it is related to a recent vacuum aspiration (suction abortion) and recent IUD placement, are redacted. Thus, the fact that tampering with the pregnancy caused a fatal injury is hidden from public view.

The final redactions in the autopsy report seem like adding insult to injury.

The fact that Cree's urine tested positive for methadone and morphine is included. Thus, Cree is being presented as a drug addict.

What's redacted is this:

"Query of the Michigan Automated Prescription System does not return a record of a prescription for methadone in the decedent's name." The authorities also redacted, "Review of avaiable medical records does not disclose a record of methadone administration during admission to the emergency department."

Cree would only have been receiving prescriptions for methadone if she was in treatment for addiction. Thus, the fact that she had no recorded history of drug addiction was hidden. The fact that drugs were in her system was not redacted.

The final blow is a not a redaction, but an omission: Cree had been administered morphine during her trip to the emergency room. The combination of omission and redaction strike me as an attempt to paint Cree as a drug addict.

Through redaction and omission, the Medical Examiner's office did little short of accuse Cree of being addicted to street drugs, and blamed her death not on an injury sustained during an abortion/IUD insertion, but on the fact that she had been pregnant.

See more of Operation Rescue's coverage:

• Family Comes Forward with New Evidence, Questions about Cree Erwin’s Fatal Botched Abortion at Planned Parenthood, April 14, 2017
• Why “Accidental Death” is the Default Setting for Coroners When Abortion is Involved, March 16, 2017
• MUST READ! Perforated Uterus Led to Death of Michigan Planned Parenthood Abortion Patient, March 14, 2017
• Pro-Life Leaders Confirm that Planned Parenthood Kalamazoo Was Involved in Patient Death, 08/31/2016
• MUST SEE! Chilling 911 Call: Mom Finds Daughter “Cold as Ice” After Abortion, 08/10/2016
• Abortion Patient Death: Emergency Radio Traffic Spotlights Events on Fatal Night 07/12/2016
• Woman Identified Who Was Found Dead after Abortion 07/08/2016
• BREAKING! Police Investigate Death of a Michigan Woman Days after an Abortion 07/07/2016

1972–1975: Abortion “without difficulty” leaves dead baby inside mother

27-year-old “Lisa” was perfectly healthy before her abortion, but she suffered unbelievable negligence that killed her in three days.

Lisa was about ten weeks pregnant. The physical examination done before the abortion didn’t detect any health issues and she had no notable conditions in her medical history. A suction abortion was done under anesthesia and recorded as being done “without difficulty.” However, Lisa was sent home without warning of a fatal mistake.

A pathology examination on what had been removed from Lisa’s uterus reported placenta, but no fetal body parts. This was a major red flag that something was seriously wrong, and Lisa should have been contacted immediately. But even though the pathology report that could have saved her life already existed, she still was allowed to die.

Three days after the abortion, Lisa was found dead in her home. The autopsy showed what had been done to her.

The pieces of Lisa’s dead child had not been seen in the pathology report because they were left inside of her. In three days, the infection had progressed so rapidly that she had developed acute endometritis, acute myometritis and pulmonary congestion with focal pulmonary hemorrhages. Her heart was found “flabby” at autopsy with subendocardial bleeding and interstitial edema.

The abortion “without difficulty” resulted in a healthy woman being sent home to die as her child’s corpse rotted inside of her. Both deaths were needless.

Sources: 

• "Fatal myocarditis associated with abortion in early pregnancy," Southern Medical Journal, February, 1980
• Case Reports: Case 1

July 1, 1971: A Beneficiary of New York's Early Liberalization

Grok AI illustration

"Audrey" is one of the women Life Dynamics identifies on their "Blackmun Wall" as having been killed by a legal abortion.

Audrey was 44 years old when she underwent a first-trimester abortion in New York on July 1, 1971.

During the abortion she went into cardiac arrest. Attempts to revive her failed; she died that day, leaving three children motherless.

The Dubious Benefits of New York Law

"Audry" was one of many women who died in the window of opportunity between limited legalization and Roe's free-for-all. The Supreme Court could have looked at these deaths and decided enough was enough. They chose instead to trust in bogus reports -- such as the review of patient records from C.R.A.S.H. -- and pretend that legalization would magically make everything okay.

In addition to “Audrey,” these are the women I know of who had the dubious benefit of dying from the newfangled safe-and-legal kind of abortion in pre-Roe New York:

• Carmen Rodriguez, July, 1970, salt solution intended to kill the fetus accidentally injected into her bloodstream
• Barbara Riley, July, 1970, sickle-cell crisis triggered by abortion recommended by doctor due to her sickle cell disease
• Pearl Schwier, July, 1970, anesthesia complications
• "Amanda" Roe, September, 1970, sent back to her home in Indiana with an untreated hole poked in her uterus
• Maria Ortega, October, 1970, fetus shoved through her uterus into her pelvic cavity then left there
• "Kimberly" Roe, December, 1970, cardiac arrest during abortion
• "Amy" Roe, January, 1971, massive pulmonary embolism
• "Andrea" Roe, January, 1971, overwhelming infection
• "Sandra" Roe, April, 1971, committed suicide due to post-abortion remorse
• "Anita" Roe, May, 1971, bled to death in her home during process of outpatient saline abortion
• Margaret Smith, June 1971, hemorrhage from multiple lacerations during outpatient hysterotomy abortion
• "Annie" Roe, June, 1971, cardiac arrest during anesthesia
• "April" Roe, August, 1971, death from outpatient saline abortion
• "Vicki" Roe, August, 1971, post-abortion infection
• "Barbara" Roe, September, 1971, cardiac arrest after saline injection for abortion
• "Tammy" Roe, October, 1971, massive post-abortion infection
• Carole Schaner, October, 1971, hemorrhage from multiple lacerations during outpatient hysterotomy abortion
• "Beth" Roe, December, 1971, saline injection meant to kill fetus accidentally injected into her bloodstream
• "Roseann" Roe, February, 1971, vomiting with seizures causing pneumonia after saline abortion
• "Connie" Roe, March, 1972, cardiac arrest during abortion
• "Julie" Roe, April, 1972, holes torn in her uterus and bowel
• "Roxanne," May, 1972, convulsions and death at start of abortion
• "Robin" Roe, May, 1972, lingering abortion complications
• Pamela Modugno, May, 1972, air in her bloodstream

Watch "It's Not Advantageous of it Kills You" on YouTube.

LDI Sources: "Maternal Mortality Associated With Legal Abortion in New York State: July 1, 1970 - June 30, 1972," Berger, Tietze, Pakter, Katz, Obstetrics and Gynecology, 43:3, March 1974, 321.

July 1, 1981: Life-Preserving Abortion Ends Mother's Life Instead

Sheryl Cottone was 23 years old when she underwent a first trimester abortion in June of 1981.

She was rushed to Veteran's Memorial Hospital in Waukon, Iowa, on July 1. She was pronounced dead on arrival.

Grok AI illustration

An autopsy found that she had died from an embolism that lodged in her heart.

The following comment was left on a RealChoice blog post regarding Sheryl’s death. Until I have permission to use her name, I will refer to the author as “Lauren.”

listen, Sheryl was my mom. She died because of clot that formed after she had an abortion. The Dr. Said it would of killed her to have the baby. She really wanted another baby. However, she wanted to be there for the 3 kids she already had. She formed a clot due to have C Factor V Liden mutation, meaning blood prone to clots. Back in 83 they didn’t know or have much information on this condition. She just might of saved my life. I now know I have same condition and can take medical precaution with surgeries, etc….

According to the Mayo Clinic website, Factor V Leiden is a genetic mutation of one of the proteins in the blood that makes it clot properly. People with this disorder are at an increased risk of developing clots inside their blood vessels, usually in the veins. Women are at increased risk of developing blood clots while pregnant or when taking estrogen. Blood thinners can be prescribed to reduce the risk of these clots and to possibly lessen the damage caused by any clots that do develop.

If you have factor V Leiden and have developed blood clots, anticoagulant medications can lessen your risk of developing additional blood clots and help you avoid potentially serious complications. Fortunately, as Lauren pointed out, treatment options for pregnant women with Factor V Leiden are far better now than they were when Sheryl faced her difficult decision. The MayoClinic site notes:

Pregnancy complications. Most women with factor V Leiden have normal pregnancies. But the mutation has been linked with an increased risk of miscarriage and possibly other complications during pregnancy, including pregnancy-induced high blood pressure (preeclampsia), slow fetal growth and early separation of the placenta from the uterine wall (placental abruption). If you’re a pregnant woman with factor V Leiden, be sure your doctor monitors you carefully throughout your pregnancy.

…. There’s no evidence that preventive treatment with blood-thinning medications would be effective enough to outweigh the potential risks of using these drugs during pregnancy or delivery.

I am very grateful to Lauren for sharing her story, and have invited her, if she chooses, to share more.

Watch Life-Saving Abortion Proves Fatal on YouTube.

Source: Iowa Death Certificate 81-013385

July 1, 1896: Another of Dr. Lucy Hagenow's Dead

 From the records of the Cook County Coroner's office:

The said Hannah Carlson now lying dead at Passavant Memorial Hospital in said City of Chicago County of Cook State of Illinois came to her death on the 1st day of July AD 1896 From Peritonitis and Intestinal Gangrene following perforation of the uterus the result of an Abortion said Abortion being performed at 104 Wells St by one Louise Hagenow and one Ida Von Schulz and from the evidence presented We the Jury recommend that the said Louise Hagenow and Ida Von Schulz be held to the Grand Jury until discharged by due course of law.

Dr. Louise "Lucy" Hagenow

Hagenow and von Schulz were arrested and released on $5,000 bond each. Emil Olsen was indicted for having arranged the abortion; he was released on $1,500 bond.

Both Hagenow and von Schulz were identified in the Inter Ocean as midwives, which was a common way to refer to female obstetricians at the time. Each said that she had been licensed to practice medicine in Switzerland, though Hagenow would later claim to have graduated from medical school in the United States.

Hannah, age 19 or 20, was 8th of the 18 victims attributed to Dr. Lucy Hagenow:

1. Louise Derchow (1st San Francisco death, 1887)
2. Annie Dorries (1888)
3. Abbia Richards (1888)
4. Emma Depp (1888)
5. Minnie Dearing (1st Chicago death, 1891)
6. Sophia Kuhn (1892)
7. Emily Anderson (1892)
8. Hannah Carlson (1896)
9. Marie Hecht (1899)
10. Mary Putnam (1905)
11. Lola Madison (1906)
12. Annie Horvatich (1907)
13. Lottie Lowy (1925)
14. Nina Pierce (1925)
15. Jean Cohen (1925)
16. Bridget Masterson (1925)
17. Elizabeth Welter (1925)
18. Mary Moorehead (1926)

Watch "8th of 18" on YouTube.

Sources:

• 'Faces a Big Docket," The Inter Ocean, July 21, 1896
• "Told in a Paragraph," The Inter Ocean, August 2, 1896
• "Olsen Admitted to Bail," The Inter Ocean, August 30, 1896

June 30, 1982: Teen's Death Counted by State as Illegal Abortion

Seventeen-year-old Jennifer E. Suddeth underwent a safe and legal abortion performed by Dr. Franklin Henry "Frank" Robinson Sr. on June 30, 1982.

On the drive home to Cerritos, Jennifer bled heavily, alarming her boyfriend, 20-year-old John Fredzess. 

Fredzess said that he called the clinic repeatedly over the four hours after their return home, but staff would not put the call through to Robinson. One nurse, he said, admonished Fredzess to "be realistic" about how severely Jennifer was bleeding. By that time, Jennifer had bled through two pairs of sweat pants, two blankets, and a towel. At last, the boyfriend said, he was able to contact Robinson at another clinic in La Puente. He said that Robinson insisted that the bleeding was normal and instructed Fredzess to stop calling.

Robinson agreed that Fredzess had repeatedly called the clinic, but denied dismissing Jennifer's symptoms as no cause for concern. He said that he had  first told Fredzess to bring Jennifer back to the clinic, but Fredzess had said he was too tired to make the drive. Robinson said he then told Fredzess to either call 911 or drive Jennifer to the hospital himself. "I was practically pleading," he said. Fredzess, Robinson said, didn't want to go to the hospital or call 911 because then people would find out abortion the abortion. He said that when Fredzess stopped calling, he assumed that Jennifer was at the hospital being tended to. 

When Jennifer went into convulsions, Fredzess said, he called an ambulance. Paramedics arrived at the home to find Jennifer already dead. She had lost at least six quarts of blood. Police interviewed the weeping and hysterical Fredzess, then botched the investigation.  

Sgt. Miriam Travis, who had been called to the scene to investigate, did not collect any evidence, such as Jennifer's clothing, the towels, or the truck seat onto which Jennifer had reportedly bled so heavily. Travis took only four photographs at the death scene because she "ran out of film" and she later lost two of the photographs.

Robinson said he learned about Jennifer's death when four patrol cars and at least ten armed officers arrived at his clinic and he was booked for first-degree murder. He was held without bail for two days before he was finally released.

After posting bail, Robinson told the Los Angeles Time that Jennifer had been "perfectly fine" when she'd left his office. "She came to me for an abortion, and I gave her an abortion. I gave her the best surgical technique I can do... to call that murder is incomprehensible to me."

The charge was reduced to manslaughter. During the second week of the trial, Travis found a box of her mail which had accumulated at her original office after she had relocated to a different room. In that box were phone records from Fredzess's home. He had said that he'd first spoken to Robinson at his La Puente clinic shortly after 2:30 pm. However, phone records showed that the first call to the La Puente office was not placed until 4:39 pm, less than 45 minutes before paramedics pronounced Jennifer dead.

With the evidence more strongly supporting Robinson's version of events, he was acquitted. He told a reporter from the Associated Press that while he was angry about having faced charges, "my anger is tempered by the sadness that Jennifer died needlessly."

The state of California nevertheless counted Jennifer's death as due to illegal abortion.

Robinson has since retired and moved to Tennessee.

Watch "Who is to Blame?" on YouTube.

Sources:

• "Advised Emergency Care, Doctor in Death Case Says," Los Angeles Times, July 23, 1982
• "Doctor stands trial," San Louis Obispo County Telegram, January 14, 1983
• "Physician acquitted in abortion patient death," The (San Bernardino County) Sun, July 14, 1983
• "Doctor Acquitted, but Abortion Foes See Larger Issues," Los Angeles Times, July 16 - 17, 1983

June 30, 1998: Slow Death After North Carolina Abortion

Grok AI illustration

Kendra Paige McLeod, 22-year-old single mother of two, was working as a sales clerk at a grocery store in Clinton, North Carolina. She underwent an abortion at a clinic in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on June 12, 1998. 

She bled heavily after the abortion. The following day, she decided to go to the hospital. She fainted three times by the time she got into the emergency room at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center. 

Doctors at the hospital transfused Kendra with nine units of blood and performed surgery to try to save her life, to no avail. She died on June 30, at the age of 22. 

Her family lost a lawsuit against the hospital. Documents do not note if the family sued the abortion provider.

Sources:

• “Jury says doctor didn’t cause woman’s death,” Fayetteville Observer, Sept. 13, 2001
• North Carolina Death Indexes, 1908-2004

June 29, 1906: Midwife's Fatal Work in Chicago

Homemaker Johanna Faulner, a 40-year-old German immigrant, died June 29, 1906, at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Chicago. Her cause of death was determined to be "Septicaemia following a criminal abortion, said criminal abortion performed by one Emily Redeniske (a midwife) in her house 1063 N. Witon Ave on or about June 14th AD 1906 and we the jury recommend she be held to the Grand Jury." 

Redeniske was arrested in the death.

Sources:

• Death certificate
• Homicide in Chicago Interactive Database

June 29, 1988: She Never Even Made it to the Hospital

Grok AI illustration

Dawn Mendoza, a 28-year-old mother of two, underwent an abortion at the hands of Edward Rubin at Women's Medical Pavilion in Dobbs Ferry, New York, on June 29, 1988.

Her brother, who had accompanied her, was instructed to wait in a grassy park across the street from the clinic and return at 4 pm to take her home. When he returned the staff again told him to come back later. When he returned at 5:30 they told him that Dawn was dead.

Rubin had performed a D&C abortion on Dawn, who then started screaming and gasping for breath. Staff tried unsuccessfully to revive her, but she died without ever being transferred to a hospital.

The medical examiner determined that she had died from amniotic fluid embolism, as evidenced by particles of placenta and amniotic fluid in her lungs.

Watch "Brother Returns to Clinic to Find Sister Dead" on YouTube.

Sources: Autopsy report #88-1488; and New York Post, July 4, 1989

June 29, 1939: Another Black Woman Dies in Harlem

Harlem Hospital

According to New York death records, 22-year-old Mary Welch died at Harlem Hospital in Manhattan on June 29, 1939. Her cause of death was "acute endomeitritis streptococcic oepticemia, abortion probably induced." This would indicate a likely criminal abortion.

I've been unable to find any news coverage about Mary's death, perhaps because Mary was Black, and thus during that time considered less worthy of news coverage.

2009-2010: Planned Parenthood kills another client

A paper in the Obstetrics & Gynecology medical journal in 2013 reported the death of a woman who died after taking the abortion pill because of Planned Parenthood’s negligence.

“Ella Roe” legally bought the abortion pill from a Planned Parenthood facility in 2009 or 2010. Planned Parenthood apparently failed to competently examine her in advance and most likely did not bother to give her an ultrasound. If they had, it would have been easy to diagnose Ella’s ectopic pregnancy.

Unaware that her life was in danger, Ella took the RU-486 pill. She trusted her health to an abortion facility and paid the price for their malpractice.

Ella died from the ruptured ectopic pregnancy. The condition could have and should have been diagnosed with a simple ultrasound, but Planned Parenthood didn’t care enough to examine her before selling her the pill.

The publication reporting her death does admit to severe side effects, but claims that their work “reinforces the safety” of the abortion pill. However, there are severe limitations and conflicts of interest that most likely prevented significant amounts of data from being included.

First, the data used was obtained mostly from Planned Parenthood, with the corporation even listed as one of the authors. They have been known to lie about statistics relating to abortion and would directly benefit from withholding data that made them look bad. Second, nobody is legally required to report abortion pill deaths or complications to authorities, meaning that it would be very easy to simply not report a case. One of the authors of the study was also noted to “receive compensation” from Danco Laboratories (the manufacturer of the abortion pill) in exchange for “providing third-party telephone consults to clinicians who call for expert advice on mifepristone.”

Other studies on the abortion pill have observed a high level of danger. Even one pro-abortion source showed that as many as 1 in 12.5 abortion pill clients had to go to the ER. Still, even this statistic could easily be underestimated because it’s hard to get accurate data on complications form American abortions because of the grossly deficient and flawed reporting system full of discrepancies. The chemical abortion pill can cause excessive bleeding, sepsis, gas gangrene, hypovolemia, uterine inversion, cryptogenic stroke, tachycardia, leukocytosis, edema, hypotension, metabolic acidosis, necrosis, immunological weakening, cardiac arrest and excruciating pain.

In addition, Planned Parenthood’s own data report showed that they missed ectopic pregnancies in 16 clients during the study period and gave them abortion pills. All they would have had to do to diagnose any of them was a basic exam and ultrasound. Every one of those women could have died the way Ella did. There is no excuse for this level of negligence.

As surprising as it is for something including Planned Parenthood’s input to admit to a client death, the claim in the publication is by no means proof that the abortion pill is safe.

Ella is not the only young woman who trusted Planned Parenthood and paid with her life.

More Planned Parenthood Deaths

Alyona Dixon got abortion pills at a Nevada Planned Parenthood in September of 2022. Although research had shown that vaginal administration of misoprostol puts women at risk of sudden onset fatal toxic shock syndrome, Planned Parenthood instructed Alyona to take this risk. She ended up going septic and dying. Her death broke the streak of exclusively dead black woman at Planned Parenthood.

Cree Erwin-Shephard, age 24, suffered internal injuries during an abortion at Planned Parenthood in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Her mother found her cold and stiff in the guest bedroom on the 4th of July, 2016. You can hear her mother's heartbreaking 911 call here.

Tonya Reaves, age 24, left a one-year-old child motherless when she bled to death in July of 2012 after an abortion at a Chicago Planned Parenthood. Planned Parenthood staff had delayed for four hours before transporting Tonya to a properly equipped hospital. By the time surgery was performed, it was too late to save her 

In 2009, 17-year-old Roselle Owens died from apparent anesthesia complications after an abortion at Planned Parenthood's Margaret Sanger Center in New York. Her family said that the staff had failed to monitor her properly and delayed transport to a properly equipped hospital. 

     

A nurse at a Southern California Planned Parenthood placed laminaria in the cervix of patient Edrica Goode in 2007 in spite of obvious signs of a vaginal infection. Since laminaria absorb whatever moisture is in the area so that they will expand and dilate the cervix, it's no surprise that the laminaria inserted into Edrica's cervix pulled the infection into her uterus and killed her.

Before Edrica's death, there wasn't the same racial pattern I observed from 2007 to 2022.

Holly Patterson, age 18, died in mid-September of 2003 from sepsis caused by abortion drugs she got at a Planned Parenthood in Hayward, California. Instead of instructing Holly to place the second dose inside her cheek and letting it dissolve, as the FDA instructed, Planned Parenthood told her that she could insert it vaginally. Researchers believe that the vaginal insertion of this second drug makes otherwise healthy young women particularly vulnerable to sudden death from toxic shock syndrome.

Vivian Tran, age 22, and died in late December of 2003, six days into a medical abortion process started at another California Planned Parenthood. Like Holly Patterson, she had been told to use the second drug vaginally instead of placing it in her cheek in keeping with FDA recommendations. Vivian was a young Asian woman.

Irene Stevenson died after an abortion at a Chicago Planned Parenthood in 2002. Planned Parenthood settled out-of-court with her bereaved husband. I have been unable to determine her race. 

In 1981 abortion patient Elise Kalat suffered a severe asthma attack after her abortion at a Massachusetts Planned Parenthood. When the medics arrived to take over Elise's care they found that nobody on site evidently knew how to perform even layman-quality CPR, much less the type of advanced CPR that would be expected of medical professionals. 

Significant Adverse Events and Outcomes

Mifepristone Adverse Events Identified by Planned Parenthood in 2009 and 2010 Compared to Those in the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System and Those Obtained Through the Freedom of Information Act