A new frontier in holding abortionists accountable may be here. In a post-Roe world, states can decide their own abortion laws. New York has a constitutional amendment allowing for abortion for any reason up until birth, and, like California, looks to be something of an abortion tourism state. That also means protecting abortionists, even when they flaunt the law of pro-life states, in this case, Louisiana. Now, Govs. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) and Jeff Landry (R-LA) are going at it, with dueling messages on the issue.
Late last month, a Louisiana grand jury indicted a New York abortionist, Dr. Margaret "Maggie" Carpenter, who provided not the pregnant teen with the abortion-inducing pills, but her 39-year-old mother, who has also been indicted. The mother then coerced her minor daughter, who was 17-years-old, into taking the pills. The young woman, who was excited about the pregnancy, suffered a medical emergency in addition to the death of the child she herself wanted.
Last Thursday, from her official account, Hochul took to X to double down on how she would refuse to honor Louisiana's request for extradition. The very next day, she also posted a media appearance on MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show," further turning this young woman's tragedy into a narrative for her pro-abortion cause.
"Doctors take an oath to protect their patients," Hochul even posted, which is completely nonsensical, especially in this case, and likely all the more reason why Carpenter should have been indicted.
Doctors take an oath to protect their patients.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) February 13, 2025
I took an oath to protect all New Yorkers.
So let me be clear: I will not sign Louisiana’s extradition order — not now, not ever. pic.twitter.com/3Ly9xcMiza
I will never send a New Yorker into harm’s way for the "crime" of being a doctor.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) February 14, 2025
This is the ripple effect of overturning Roe — government-mandated pregnancies and doctors facing jail time.
Not in New York.
We will always stand up for women’s rights. pic.twitter.com/M2PmbP5qVE
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Hochul went with a similar tactic a few weeks before, when the indictment was handed down by a West Baton Rouge Parish grand jury.
These are not pro-choice talking points, but rather pro-abortion ones, and those that protect those who prey on vulnerable young women, as Carpenter, the teen's mother, and Hochul are doing here.
Louisiana is attempting to prosecute a New York doctor for providing reproductive health care.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) January 31, 2025
After Roe was overturned, I signed laws to protect patients & doctors from exactly this type of action.
We will not comply with an extradition request.
We will remain a safe harbor. pic.twitter.com/dZtoDcNGbs
Landry has also spoken about the case over X these past few weeks, as he loudly called out Hochul for such false narratives.
He also summarized the incident not just from a pro-life perspective, but one which gave more accurate details of the case, which clued users into the victims involved, not merely the abortionist whom Hochul is protecting.
Fixed it for you, @GovKathyHochul.
— Governor Jeff Landry (@LAGovJeffLandry) January 31, 2025
News flash, the American people aren’t falling for your lies!
This case is about coercion. Plain and simple. pic.twitter.com/7saVnsPJZh
A minor in Louisiana got pregnant. She was excited to have a baby and was planning a gender reveal party.
— Governor Jeff Landry (@LAGovJeffLandry) February 13, 2025
Her mom conspired with a NY doctor to get a chemical abortion pill in the mail and coerced her to take it. She ended up in the hospital.
There is only one right answer in… pic.twitter.com/qFOu3liTpm
So you’re telling me @GovKathyHochul is protecting criminals over victims?!
— Governor Jeff Landry (@LAGovJeffLandry) February 14, 2025
And they wonder why people and businesses are fleeing the state🤔 https://t.co/F4gLW1XanM
Many media outlets reporting on the case have made it about Louisiana's strict abortion laws, even though that's not what is at issue here.
A Monday article from the Shreveport News, in addition to highlighting Louisiana's strict abortion laws, but conveniently not New York's lax ones, even claimed that the abortionist was "accused of prescribing the abortion pill online to a Louisiana teenager," when she prescribed them to her mother, without any input from the young woman at the center of this case. Last month's article went with the same tactic, even with the headline, "Louisiana grand jury indicts New York doctor accused of prescribing abortion pill to teen."
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, in addition to posting to X about the extradition request, which was sent last Tuesday, posted a quoted reply to Hochul, setting her and her narrative straight. It's a form of correction that the Shreveport News could benefit from as well.
This child was NOT this doctor’s patient. She never met her, saw her, or knew anything about her. The child is a victim. @GovKathyHochul is protecting a drug dealer who victimized a child. https://t.co/21cTGVVJA8
— Attorney General Liz Murrill (@AGLizMurrill) February 14, 2025
Further, if we're going to talk about state laws on abortion, there's a much more relevant one in Louisiana worth mentioning, as Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America did in a statement when the indictment was brought at the end of January. In Louisiana, it's a crime to coerce someone to take the abortion drug, and there are also strengthened safeguards.
"This case exposes how mail-order abortion drugs are fueling an epidemic of coercion, a new form of domestic violence against mothers and their babies. Women who never wanted an abortion to begin with are being assaulted and ending up in the emergency room. This is precisely why Louisiana enacted its law making abortion drug coercion a crime and strengthening safeguards on abortion drugs by making them controlled substances that require a prescription. But in blue states, pro-abortion politicians are doing the polar opposite, shielding abortionists who – as the local district attorney noted – profit from a faceless process requiring nothing more than an online questionnaire. This cannot remotely be considered health care. We thank attorneys general like Liz Murrill and Ken Paxton for standing with women and children. Every pro-life state should do likewise," said SBA Pro-Life America Director of Legal Affairs Katie Daniel.
Daniel's statement not only mentioned involvement from Murrill, but also of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, as Carpenter has allegedly harmed women in his state as well.
Thanks to the wide availability of this method, abortions have actually gone up in recent years, with this method also the most commonly used to kill an unborn child.
Common though it may be, it's also wildly misunderstood, not helped by how the pro-abortion side misleads women into thinking the method will be like "a heavy period," though the bleeding can last for weeks and lead to complications. Unfortunately, that the 17-year-old in Louisiana suffered a medical emergency is not unheard of, given what we know about such a method.
The process involves the woman receiving the first part of the abortion-inducing drug regimen, and then she is sent off to finish the process at home, alone. The first drug blocks progesterone and starves the unborn child of key nutrients. Then, 24-48-hours later, after enduring symptoms such as cramping, bleeding, and contractions, a woman expels the deceased child, which at this point may already have some key features visible, into the toilet.
In addition to the side effects mentioned above, most women experience abdominal pain and may also experience nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and a headache. Women may need surgery to repeat the procedure if the method is incomplete.
Under the former Biden-Harris administration, which was particularly pro-abortion, the method only became more dangerous.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) relaxed regulations in December 2021 so that women do not need to acquire the medication through a doctor's visit, but rather can do so online or through the mail. This prevents doctors from being able to confirm that the woman is even pregnant or that she is eligible for the method. It makes instances like this one in Louisiana not so surprising. Doctors also cannot ensure that the woman is not experiencing an ectopic pregnancy, which this method will not treat. Such is a nonviable pregnancy, which can kill the woman if not removed and is not an abortion.
This method was approved for up to seven weeks in 2000 and then up to 10 weeks in 2016. The farther along in pregnancy the woman is when she undergoes such a method, the more dangerous it can be.
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