Skip to main content
Live Action LogoLive Action
West Alabama Womens Center Abortion Clinic

Autopsy: Woman died from botched abortion at Alabama’s most prolific abortion business

Icon of a magnifying glassAnalysis·By Cassy Cooke

Autopsy: Woman died from botched abortion at Alabama’s most prolific abortion business

A woman who died under suspicious circumstances last year has been confirmed to have suffered a botched abortion, which ultimately killed her. The autopsy report of 29-year-old April Lowery, which disclosed that Lowery died of a perforated uterus, was obtained by CEC for Life on behalf of a coalition of pro-life groups.

In August of 2020, the details of Lowery’s visit came to light. She had undergone an abortion in May and was seen leaving the West Alabama Women’s Center (WAWC) in obvious distress. She was pale and unable to walk even a few feet to a vehicle waiting for her. No 911 call was made. Instead, the driver of the vehicle transported Lowery to a hospital nearly an hour away, where she later passed away. A staffer at WAWC allegedly told a pro-life activist that Lowery had died of a drug overdose and had not undergone an abortion, but the autopsy report revealed the truth.

The autopsy report stated that Lowery suffered a perforation on the left side of her uterus, meaning that a hole was torn in the tissue from the abortion instruments, and then she lost 51 ounces of blood through internal bleeding. Lowery’s preborn child was found intact in her uterus but the child’s gestational age is not listed.

READ: Alabama lawmaker tries to equate abortions with vasectomies, misses crucial biological fact

Abortionist Louis Payne, 81, was working the day of Lowery’s death and retired just months later, potentially protecting WAWC from the numerous complaints filed. The Board of Medical Examiners (BME) is investigating Lowery’s death, while the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) reportedly refused to take any action. If the BME finds any malpractice in its investigation, it will only affect Payne himself — not WAWC. The ADPH would need to investigate to determine whether WAWC staff followed proper protocols and if they, too, should be held accountable.

Article continues below

Dear Reader,

Have you ever wanted to share the miracle of human development with little ones? Live Action is proud to present the "Baby Olivia" board book, which presents the content of Live Action's "Baby Olivia" fetal development video in a fun, new format. It's perfect for helping little minds understand the complex and beautiful process of human development in the womb.

Receive our brand new Baby Olivia board book when you give a one-time gift of $30 or more (or begin a new monthly gift of $15 or more), and your gift will be DOUBLED to fuel Live Action’s life-saving content.

It is believed that Lowery was taken from WAWC in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to UAB Hospital in Birmingham, Alabama — a 59-mile drive. WAWC staffers could have potentially prevented her death had they arranged for an ambulance to take her to the nearest emergency center. By the time she received much-needed medical care, it seems to have been too late. No explanation appears to have been given as to why the driver of the vehicle did not go to the nearest emergency room for assistance.

WAWC is Alabama’s most prolific and profitable abortion business, having committed over 80,000 abortions since its doors opened.

“April suffered horrendous, avoidable injuries that resulted in her death and the death of her child. This cannot be allowed to be swept under the rug,” Fr. Terry Gensemer, Director of the CEC for Life, said in a statement. “Someone needs to be held accountable in a court of law for this tragic loss of life.”

“Like” Live Action News on Facebook for more pro-life news and commentary!

Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.

Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.

Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!

Read Next

Read NextInuit mother Keira Alexandra Kronvold, 38, look on during an interview with AFP on May 5, 2025 in Copenhagen. Keira Alexandra Kronvold's baby daughter Zammi was only two hours old when Danish social workers separated her from her mother, an Indigenous Inuit woman deemed unfit to raise the child after a contested parental aptitude test. Danish authorities have previously faced backlash for an experiment that took Greenlandic children from their families in the 1950s to socialise them in Denmark, and for forcing thousands of Inuit women to use IUD contraceptive devices from the 1960s to 1990s.
International

Greenlandic victims of Denmark's 'parenting tests' still don't have their children back

Cassy Cooke

·

Spotlight Articles