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A New York doctor has been indicted for allegedly sending abortion pills to a teenager in Louisiana, marking what could be the first time a provider has faced criminal charges for mailing the medication since the rollback of abortion rights in the United States.
On Friday, a grand jury issued an indictment against Dr. Margaret Carpenter for criminal abortion, a felony in Louisiana, which has a near-total ban on the procedure. An indictment was also issued against the teenager’s mother. The charges stem from Dr. Carpenter allegedly sending abortion pills to the teenager’s mother, who then gave them to her daughter.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the state would not comply with an extradition request for Dr. Carpenter’s arrest, stating, “I am proud to say that I will never, under any circumstances, turn this doctor over to the State of Louisiana under any extradition request.” This stance is supported by New York’s shield law, passed in 2023, which protects doctors who prescribe and send abortion pills to patients in states where the procedure is banned.
Louisiana has enacted a near-total abortion ban since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, with no exceptions for rape or incest. The state was the first in the US to classify abortion medications mifepristone and misoprostol as “controlled dangerous substances,” making it a crime punishable by up to five years in prison to access the drugs without a prescription.
Louisiana Assistant District Attorney Tony Clayton told Baton Rouge Public Radio that Dr. Carpenter sent the pills to the teenager’s mother, who felt compelled to give them to her daughter. Following the indictment, Louisiana’s Republican Attorney General Liz Murrill stated that the state would “hold individuals accountable for breaking the law.”
In contrast, New York Attorney General Letitia James called the criminal charges against Dr. Carpenter a “cowardly attempt” to “weaponize the law against out-of-state providers.” She emphasized that New York would not allow such actions to undermine the ability of providers to deliver critical care.
The Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine, which Dr. Carpenter co-founded, condemned the indictment, calling it “the latest in a series of threats that jeopardizes women’s access to reproductive healthcare throughout this country.” The organization highlighted that the medication is approved by US regulators and has been proven safe and effective for decades.
Abortion pills have become the most common method of ending a pregnancy in the US, accounting for nearly two-thirds of all abortions in the country. The case against Dr. Carpenter underscores the ongoing legal and political battles over abortion rights and access to reproductive healthcare.
As the legal proceedings unfold, the case of Dr. Margaret Carpenter will likely serve as a significant test of the power of states that criminalize abortion to prosecute providers outside their borders, and the ability of states that support abortion rights to shield providers from such prosecutions. The outcome could have far-reaching implications for reproductive healthcare access across the United States.
