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Charges dropped against woman who birthed 31-week baby in toilet after taking abortion pill
The Durham County district attorney in North Carolina has dropped charges against a woman who took abortion pills at 31 weeks pregnant and gave birth to a live baby on a toilet.
In August, Syeishia Johnson and Elijah Speight were arrested after Johnson allegedly took abortion pills and delivered a live baby at 31 weeks.
911 was called, and the baby was found in the toilet, still with a pulse.
Johnson knew she was past 20 weeks pregnant at the time she obtained the abortion drugs.
Johnson was charged with assault inflicting serious bodily injury on an unborn child, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, and negligent child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury; Speight was charged with negligent child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury.
District Attorney Satana Deberry, who is an abortion supporter, said the charges against both Johnson and Speight have been dropped.
In an August court hearing, Assistant Public Defender Barbara Lagemann claimed that a child in the womb is not living, stating, “Statute does require that the alleged ‘victim’ be living at the time of the assault. In order to be living, one must be born.”
This summer, Syeishia Johnson and Elijah Speight were arrested after Johnson allegedly took abortion pills, despite being 31 weeks pregnant, far past the 10-week limit put in place by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Johnson reportedly didn't find out she was pregnant until she was 20 weeks along, and then ordered mifepristone and misoprostol (the abortion pill regimen) from Virginia. However, she reportedly only began taking the pills a few days before the baby was born at 31 weeks gestation.
According to a detective, “On July 29, 2026, Ms. Johnson began having abdominal pain and sat down during the day to help with the pain. She sat on the toilet and gave birth to a child.”
After giving birth, she called 911, and first responders found the baby in the toilet, still alive. CPR was performed on the baby, who was then taken to the hospital weighing 5.5 pounds. The baby, thankfully, survived.
Johnson, 18, was charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, assault inflicting serious bodily injury on an unborn child, and negligent child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury. Speight, 19, was charged with assault inflicting serious bodily injury on an unborn child.
In North Carolina, the law restricts abortion after 12 weeks with certain exceptions, and requires a 72-hour waiting period.
District Attorney Satana Deberry has confirmed that the charges against Johnson and Speight have been dropped. She has previously been open about supporting abortion, and in 2022, said she wouldn't prosecute abortion-related cases.
“Criminalizing personal health care decisions around abortion creates untenable choices for women — particularly those experiencing sexual assault and domestic violence — and undermines trust and fairness in our criminal legal system," she wrote.
In August, after Johnson and Speight were arrested, Deberry hinted she would not prosecute this case.
“What I can say is that I have been on the record over and over again saying that I believe a woman has the right to choose and has the right to making decisions about her own body, and we will review the evidence in this case in that light,” she said.
Court filings didn't give a specific reason, but a comment from Assistant Public Defender Barbara Lagemann in an August court hearing seems to hint at the argument: preborn children are not alive. “Statute does require that the alleged ‘victim’ be living at the time of the assault," Lagemann said. “In order to be living, one must be born.”
Deberry sent a letter to the couple's defense attorneys outlining why she chose not to prosecute the case. She said a preborn child is not a child eligible for protection under child abuse laws, and that mothers cannot commit battery on themselves.
“The Durham County District Attorney will not ask the Court to create a new class of victims and an entirely new basis for criminalization,” Deberry wrote. “That is the role of the NC General Assembly.”
She also argued that the abortion drugs may not have been responsible for Johnson's premature delivery.
“[I]t is unclear if the substances she ingested were the probable cause of the preterm delivery,” Deberry wrote. “Spontaneous preterm labor and delivery are not uncommon. It is especially not uncommon in young black teens with ongoing financial and social issues, such as faced by Ms. Johnson.”
Deberry further pointed to the couple's immediate call to 911 and refusal to harm the baby after birth as proof that they didn't want to hurt the baby.
The baby is now in the custody of Johnson's mother, with both Johnson and Speight living with her mother and able to have unsupervised visits.
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
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·Charges dropped against woman who birthed 31-week baby in toilet after taking abortion pill
The Durham County district attorney in North Carolina has dropped charges against a woman who took abortion pills at 31 weeks pregnant and gave birth to a live baby on a toilet.
In August, Syeishia Johnson and Elijah Speight were arrested after Johnson allegedly took abortion pills and delivered a live baby at 31 weeks.
911 was called, and the baby was found in the toilet, still with a pulse.
Johnson knew she was past 20 weeks pregnant at the time she obtained the abortion drugs.
Johnson was charged with assault inflicting serious bodily injury on an unborn child, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, and negligent child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury; Speight was charged with negligent child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury.
District Attorney Satana Deberry, who is an abortion supporter, said the charges against both Johnson and Speight have been dropped.
In an August court hearing, Assistant Public Defender Barbara Lagemann claimed that a child in the womb is not living, stating, “Statute does require that the alleged ‘victim’ be living at the time of the assault. In order to be living, one must be born.”
This summer, Syeishia Johnson and Elijah Speight were arrested after Johnson allegedly took abortion pills, despite being 31 weeks pregnant, far past the 10-week limit put in place by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Johnson reportedly didn't find out she was pregnant until she was 20 weeks along, and then ordered mifepristone and misoprostol (the abortion pill regimen) from Virginia. However, she reportedly only began taking the pills a few days before the baby was born at 31 weeks gestation.
According to a detective, “On July 29, 2026, Ms. Johnson began having abdominal pain and sat down during the day to help with the pain. She sat on the toilet and gave birth to a child.”
After giving birth, she called 911, and first responders found the baby in the toilet, still alive. CPR was performed on the baby, who was then taken to the hospital weighing 5.5 pounds. The baby, thankfully, survived.
Johnson, 18, was charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, assault inflicting serious bodily injury on an unborn child, and negligent child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury. Speight, 19, was charged with assault inflicting serious bodily injury on an unborn child.
In North Carolina, the law restricts abortion after 12 weeks with certain exceptions, and requires a 72-hour waiting period.
District Attorney Satana Deberry has confirmed that the charges against Johnson and Speight have been dropped. She has previously been open about supporting abortion, and in 2022, said she wouldn't prosecute abortion-related cases.
“Criminalizing personal health care decisions around abortion creates untenable choices for women — particularly those experiencing sexual assault and domestic violence — and undermines trust and fairness in our criminal legal system," she wrote.
In August, after Johnson and Speight were arrested, Deberry hinted she would not prosecute this case.
“What I can say is that I have been on the record over and over again saying that I believe a woman has the right to choose and has the right to making decisions about her own body, and we will review the evidence in this case in that light,” she said.
Court filings didn't give a specific reason, but a comment from Assistant Public Defender Barbara Lagemann in an August court hearing seems to hint at the argument: preborn children are not alive. “Statute does require that the alleged ‘victim’ be living at the time of the assault," Lagemann said. “In order to be living, one must be born.”
Deberry sent a letter to the couple's defense attorneys outlining why she chose not to prosecute the case. She said a preborn child is not a child eligible for protection under child abuse laws, and that mothers cannot commit battery on themselves.
“The Durham County District Attorney will not ask the Court to create a new class of victims and an entirely new basis for criminalization,” Deberry wrote. “That is the role of the NC General Assembly.”
She also argued that the abortion drugs may not have been responsible for Johnson's premature delivery.
“[I]t is unclear if the substances she ingested were the probable cause of the preterm delivery,” Deberry wrote. “Spontaneous preterm labor and delivery are not uncommon. It is especially not uncommon in young black teens with ongoing financial and social issues, such as faced by Ms. Johnson.”
Deberry further pointed to the couple's immediate call to 911 and refusal to harm the baby after birth as proof that they didn't want to hurt the baby.
The baby is now in the custody of Johnson's mother, with both Johnson and Speight living with her mother and able to have unsupervised visits.
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
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!
Cassy Cooke
·Fact Checks
Cassy Cooke
·Analysis
Nancy Flanders
·Abortion Pill
Carole Novielli
·Pop Culture
Cassy Cooke
·Investigative
Nancy Flanders
·International
Cassy Cooke
·Pop Culture
Cassy Cooke
·International
Cassy Cooke
·Analysis
Cassy Cooke
·Issues
Cassy Cooke
·