Louisiana woman pleads not guilty after allegedly coercing teen to take abortion pill

A Louisiana woman facing a felony indictment for illegally ordering and giving her daughter abortion pills has pled not guilty to the charges.

In January, a grand jury indicted the mother, who is accused of ordering the abortion pill from New York Dr. Margaret Carpenter, in violation of Louisiana law. The woman gave the pills to her daughter, a pregnant teen who was reportedly “excited” to have a baby, and coerced the girl to take them. The girl later suffered serious complications that required emergency medical care. Media reports are declining to identify the woman in order to protect her daughter’s privacy.

“I’m charging the mother because she ordered the pill, and she paid for the pill with her credit card and she gave the pill to a minor,” Baton Rouge District Attorney Tony Clayton told the Illuminator. “That’s illegal in the state of Louisiana.”

Violation of the state’s law carries penalties of one to five years in prison and a fine ranging from $5,000-$50,000.

According to the Illuminator, the woman was arrested the same day she was indicted and posted bond later that evening.

Clayton and Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill maintain that the mother coerced her daughter into taking the pill, ordering her to proceed with the abortion or risk being kicked out of the house. However, she is not being charged with coercion.

“The young child was told by the mother that she had to take the pill or else, and the child took the pill,” Clayton said. “To ship a pill from another state is equivalent to me shipping fentanyl or any other type of drugs over here that end up in the mouths and stomachs of our minor kids.”

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Louisiana also indicted Dr. Carpenter with the same felony charges, noting she sent a “cocktail of pills” to the mother based only on a simple questionnaire.

Following the indictment, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry sent a formal request to New York Governor Kathy Hochul for Carpenter’s extradition, but Hochul has doubled-down on her support of Carpenter and anyone who aids and abets in an out-of-state abortion. New York has also further strengthened its shield law, further protecting abortionists by allowing them to anonymously prescribe abortion pills.

Carpenter also faces a lawsuit in Texas for mailing abortion pills to a woman in that state, which also has pro-life protections for preborn children.