SUMMARY: Catherine Pierce, age 27, died on October 10, 1989. She had lingered for seven months in a coma after an abortion performed by Daniel McBrayer at Atlanta Surgi-Center in Atlanta, GA.
Catherine's Lingering Death
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| Grok AI illustration |
October 10, 1989, 27-year-old Catherine Pierce died in a nursing home in Tennessee from abortion complications that had left her comatose since March 11. Her 11-year-old daughter had spent seven months in a futile wait for her mother to recover and return to her.
As a black woman, Catherine had been at higher risk of death from an abortion than a white woman. There is no record of why Catherine, an unmarried licensed practical nurse, made this choice.
Catherine's 19-week fetus had been aborted at Atlanta Surgi-Center, which had at one time also done business as "Northside Women's Clinic."
Dr. Daniel McBrayer is the one who took instruments in hand to pull Catherine's unborn baby out in pieces.
Catherine, a licensed practical nurse from Chattanooga, had gone into cardiac arrest while left unattended in recovery after her abortion. Staff didn't notice that she was unresponsive until 30 minutes after the abortion was completed. She was rushed to Crawford Long Hospital in a comatose state.
Catherine was first transferred to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga before being admitted to a nursing home in Hamilton County, Tennessee.
What Investigators Found
State officials investigated the case while Catherine was still clinging to life. In an affidavit for a raid on the facility, officials cited Surgi-Center for failing to file a report to the state within ten days.
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| 1979 Kirkman yearbook |
They cited this
National Abortion Federation facility -- supposedly among the safest facilities in the world -- for administering the same anesthesia dosages to patients whose weights ranges from 107 to 167 pounds. Catherine and another patient had been administered the same amount of anesthesia that day even though one patient weighed 52 pounds more than the other. I found a photo of a young Chattanooga woman also named Catherine Pierce in the 1979 Kirkman Technical High School yearbook. She was slender, leading me to believe that this was the fatally injured Catherine Pierce and that she was the lighter of the two patients given the same dose of anesthesia.
State investigators indicated that they'd been turned away the first time they'd tried to inspect the facility, and were forced to stage a raid in order to obtain the records needed to investigate the mishap that later killed Catherine. The clinic complained that they'd only turned the state investigators away because they'd failed to display badges and a subpoena. They also complained to the press that the raid was "political harassment" due to the fact that an anti-abortion activist had complained to the state about the facility.
Among the patient care problems cited, the investigators also said that they found discrepancies between the number of fetuses sent to the disposal lab and the number of abortions performed. In 1989 Atlanta Surgi-Center had logged 1,748 abortions, but had only sent 155 fetuses for disposal. In 1988 they had logged 2,774 abortions, but only sent 155 fetuses for disposal. In 1987 they logged 1,104 abortions but only sent 306 fetuses for disposal. The investigation into fetus disposal was prompted by local prolifers reporting that they had seen hundreds of fetuses in the clinic's dumpsters. Dr. Gay, the clinic director, denied the allegations, but the numbers backed the prolifers.
The evidence of slovenliness was convincing enough that the top-notch facility had its permit revoked until it made corrections. To reiterate, among the deficiencies that this top-notch National Abortion Federation member clinic had been cited for were:
- Inadequate supervision of anesthesia
- Inadequate supervision of patients while under anesthesia
- Inadequate record keeping
- Administering the same dosage of anesthesia to patients regardless of how much the patient weighed
The clinic's administrator, Beth Petzelt, said that they would fight the revocation. "I don't believe that patients are in danger here," she told the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, "This facility has always delivered quality health care, and I see no reason that will not continue. We feel we can make the necessary corrections to satisfy DHR and our own internal administration." Petzelt also said, "I feel that the anesthesia provided in this facility is very safe and complies with the standard of care for a facility of this type."
If they'd been able to make the necessary corrections on their own, why hadn't they done it already just as part of being part of the prestigious National Abortion Federation? And by "a facility of this type," what exactly did she mean? One that leaves patients unattended in recovery and gives the same dose of anesthesia to a 107-pound patient as they'd give to a patient who weighs 56% more?
She also claimed that Catherine's case was the only anesthesia complication in 40,000 cases. But they hadn't reported Catherine's case to the state as required and they had gotten caught giving the same anesthesia doses to patients over a wide weight range. And, most damning of all, even though Catherine had left the facility unresponsive and in an ambulance, her medical record said, "I have examined the patient and state that she is fully recovered from anesthesia and ready for discharge from the Atlanta Surgi-Center."
A lawsuit on behalf of Catherine's daughter resulted in a $2 million wrongful death verdict.The award was to consist of a $400,000 up-front payment and $2,000 a month for life.
Atlanta Surgi-Center is the same facility operating as "Atlanta Northside" when Geneva Colton had undergone her fatal abortion in 1979.
Sources:
- Estate of Catherine Pierce vs. Dr. Daniel McBrayer, PHysician, and Kenneth Hodge, Nurse Anesthetist and Atlanta Surgi-Center
- "Prosecutors Seize Records in Raid on Abortion Clinic," Atlanta Journal-Constitution, May 12, 1989
- "Fulton Prosecutor Says Raid on Abortion Clinic Not Political," Atlanta Journal-Constitution, May 13, 1989
- "Abortion Clinic Faces Revocation Of Permit," Atlanta Journal-Constitution, July 28, 1989
- "Child Wins $2 Million In Abortion Death Case," Chattanooga News-Free Press, January 4, 1990
- "Abortion clinic settles suit over death for $2 million," Atlanta Journal-Constitution, January 5, 1990
- "Abortion Clinic to Pay $2 Million Settlement in Woman's Death," The Georgia Bulletin, January 11, 1990
- "Abortion Death Brings $2 Million Settlement," Abortion Injury Report, May, 1990
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Veteran pro-life investigator Kevin Sherlock asks people of good will to help him have Planned Parenthood prosecuted for profiteering from the rapes and incests of underage girls many thousands of times each year.
Sherlock has pulled the police records of hundreds of cities and has pulled the child protective services records of multiple states to prove Planned Parenthood staffers are violating mandated reporting laws designed to protect girl victims. But there is more to be done. Sherlock will make sure more and more evidence gets to federal and state prosecutors who care about protecting girls from abusers and profiteers.
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Sherlock has talked to many girls and young women who trust him. Their stories and the forensic evidence shows most of them undergo pill abortions or humiliating invasive surgical abortions due to fear or ignorance or pressure or coercion. He treats the girls or women carrying children or devastated from their abortions as friends and neighbors in his home town, not afterthoughts.Thank you for doing what you can to help girls and fight sexual predators and rape profiteers.
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