'Heartbeat law' not keeping pregnant woman alive, AG insists
Share and Follow

Inset: Adriana Smith (GoFundMe). Background: Footage captured inside of a hospital (WANF/YouTube).

Georgia’s attorney general says the state’s “heartbeat law” is not forcing a pregnant woman who has been declared brain-dead to stay on life support after reports emerged last week saying she was being kept alive until her fetus can be delivered.

“There is nothing in the LIFE Act that requires medical professionals to keep a woman on life support after brain death,” said AG Chris Carr’s office in a public statement Friday, according to local NBC affiliate WXIA. “Removing life support is not an action ‘with the purpose to terminate a pregnancy,”” the statement said, quoting the local state law.

The mother of Adriana Smith, 30, says Emory University doctors have told them the pregnant mother is on life support because of the LIFE Act, which they have condemned as “torture.” Supporters of the law have pushed back on the claim in recent days, saying Smith’s case is unique on account of abortion not being involved and her health crisis.

“Our reading of the situation is that this particular circumstance was not intended, nor does it apply, with the heartbeat bill,” said Mack Parnell, of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, in a statement to WXIA.

The conservative advocacy group has been speaking out in support of the legislation and Smith’s medical ordeal.

“Trying to paint the ‘heartbeat’ bill as doing something that it doesn’t is a disservice to our state,” Parnell said. “It was not the intention. We will leave those decisions to the family. And I will be very empathetic to the family whatever circumstance they find themselves in.”

Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox. 

Smith’s mother, April Newkirk, spoke to WXIA last week and said that when her daughter was nearly nine weeks pregnant in February, she began experiencing severe headaches and went to the hospital. Hospital staff sent Smith home with medication — no CT scan, no further observation, Newkirk said.

The next morning, Smith’s boyfriend woke to find her gasping for air and gurgling, and he called 911. When she arrived at the hospital, a CT scan allegedly revealed several blood clots in her brain.

Newkirk told WXIA that if her daughter had received a CT scan or been admitted to the hospital when she first went in, “they would have caught it. It could have been prevented.”

Doctors asked for Newkirk’s permission to perform a procedure to relieve pressure on her brain, and she granted it. “Then they called me back and said they couldn’t do it,” Newkirk told WXIA.

Smith was declared brain-dead, with no hope of recovery. However, because she was almost nine weeks pregnant, Newkirk said the doctors told her Georgia’s so-called “heartbeat law” forbids the medical termination of  her pregnancy since a fetal heartbeat was detected, which is required under the law. And because Smith is no longer seen as being at risk because of her lack of brain activity, she is being forced to stay on life support until her fetus is considered viable, possibly until 32 weeks of gestation. Smith is reportedly 21 weeks pregnant as of this writing.

Share and Follow
You May Also Like

Florida Grandmother Charged with Husband’s Murder and Concealment in Herb Garden

In early 2012, a series of perplexing stories began to emerge from…

Downtown Theft: Homeless Woman Taken into Custody for Purse Incident

By Staff Correspondent GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A 48-year-old woman, Una’dreen Jones, was…

Disturbing Text Messages Uncovered: Investigation Reveals Chilling Details in Teen’s Murder Case

Left inset: Kennan Peoples (Pemiscot County Jail). Right inset: Donald Peoples Jr.…

Tragic Road Rage Incident in Nevada Claims Life of 11-Year-Old En Route to School

An 11-year-old boy tragically lost his life on Friday as a result…

Shocking Classroom Incident: Teacher Arrested Over Student Consumption of THC Gummies

Share An Indiana high school teacher is under scrutiny after two students…

Tragic Twist: Convicted Felon Blames Burglar After Fatally Shooting Girlfriend at Doorstep

An Alabama woman has tragically lost her life in a shooting incident,…

Shocking Incident: Off-Duty Cop Accused of Firing 17 Shots into Man’s Back – Uncover the Full Story

Insets, from left: Atlanta police Officer Gerald Walker (APD) and Linton Blackwell…

DOJ Challenges Trump-Appointed Judge’s Ruling on National Guard: What You Need to Know

Left: Donald Trump speaks at the annual Road to Majority conference in…