Only parts of the child was left in her. It was an incomplete abortion.
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The procedure would also be allowed when a fetus is deemed “medically futile.”
If a physician violates the law, they risk losing their license. They could also face up to a decade in prison.
It’s the combination of the vague wording and high personal stakes for the medical providers that create a situation where a patient like Thurman can fall through the cracks, said Greer Donley, an associate professor of law at the University of Pittsburgh who is a national expert on abortion.
“They’re afraid that if they act too quickly, they could lose their freedom, their vocation, everything – like the stakes are exceptionally high,” Donley said. “And so, you have to understand when you think about the vague laws, how you would act, how any rational person would act when those are the stakes of trying to understand vague laws.”