The Louisiana mother facing criminal charges for her daughter’s abortion pleaded not guilty Tuesday.
The woman stands accused of ordering abortion medication from a New York doctor and then providing it to her daughter. The New Paltz doctor, Margaret Carpenter, also faces criminal charges in Louisiana, but Gov. Hochul has refused to extradite her.
It is believed to be the first time since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade that one state has attempted to prosecute a doctor in another state for prescribing abortion medication.
“Never, under any circumstances will I sign an extradition agreement that sends our doctor into harm’s way to be prosecuted as a criminal for simply following her oath,” Hochul said in early February.
Louisiana authorities have said the woman was angry her teenage daughter got pregnant and gave her an ultimatum: take the abortion medication or find a new place to live.
According to Louisiana prosecutors, the daughter took the medication but experienced a medical emergency, leading to the police investigation and charges against her mother.
Earlier this year, Louisiana classified abortion drugs mifepristone and misoprostol as “controlled dangerous substances,” placing them in the same category as narcotic drugs. The abortion meds have been used safely for decades.
“I’m charging the mother because she ordered the pill, and she paid for the pill with her credit card and she gave the pill to a minor,” West Baton Rouge District Attorney Tony Clayton told the Louisiana Illuminator. “That’s illegal in the state of Louisiana.”