Question

If a woman in Texas takes abortion pills voluntarily, she would be charged with murder.

Answer 1

This claim is untrue.

The claim is made by the Twitter account of Pamela Keith, a Democratic Politician who practices workplace law. Her account is filled with her strong opinions on hot political divides, which accounts for her take on Texas’ abortion laws. 

Keith comments on the case of Mason Herring of Houston Texas, pleading guilty to injury of a child and assault on a pregnant person. Ms. Herring delivered the child 10 weeks early due to the continuous abortion pills Mr. Herring would slip into her drinks. Mr. Herring was charged 180 days in jail and 10 years of probation. 

However, Keith claims if a woman were to take abortion pills voluntarily she would be charged with murder. This aspect of the claim is untrue, according to the Texas Tribune, “State laws do not criminalize the person who has an abortion.” The state criminalizes the doctor who performs abortions and bans the sale of abortion medication. But to be clear, a woman would not be charged with murder for having an abortion. Perhaps Keith is referencing a case that was dropped of a Texas woman accused of performing a self-induced abortion (linked below). “But there is no Texas law that criminalizes or imposes penalties on people who have abortions. And state law also explicitly exempts people from criminal homicide charges for having abortions.”  

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/08/us/texas-abortion-drug-sentence.html#:~:text=The%20man%2C%20Mason%20Herring%2C%2039,of%20assault%20to%20induce%20abortion.

https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/11/texas-abortion-law-birth-control-what-you-need-to-know/#:~:text=It%20is%20still%20illegal%20to,function%E2%80%9Dof%20a%20pregnant%20patient.

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/23021104/texas-abortion-murder-charge-starr-county

Comments

This is a good fact check that cites multiple sources and goes into depth about what this article is talking about. It is great that you also used quotes to show where you got your information. In the beginning I would state what claim in the article is untrue for clarity purposes.

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Reading the headline, I almost immediately smelled something fishy.
You went in depth with reliable sources to determine that the original post is exaggerated. The twitter account was, indeed, full of left leaning content and I think you cited the most critical fact: "... there is no Texas law that criminalises or imposes penalties on people who have abortions..."

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This is a good fact-check. It shows the background of this problem in Texas. The original post was misleading due to the charges not falling on her but on the doctor who performed the procedure.

Answer 2

So, this claim touches upon two different things. The original tweet talks about how a man in Texas slipped abortion pills to his wife, severely damaged the fetus and got sentenced to 180 days in jail. It claims that if the woman herself had done this, she would have been charged with murder. I decided to look further into this story to see what it was about because the tweet itself is a little confusing. The Texas man, Mason Herring, was purposefully attempting to kill the child by sneaking abortion pills to his wife, Catherine Herring, in drinks. He pleaded guilty for “injury to a child and assault of a pregnant person” (The Guardian). This was reported on by The Guardian, NBC News and ABC News. So, this part of the tweet is true.

The other part of the tweet touches upon the overturning of Roe v. Wade and Texas’s abortion laws. According to The Texas Tribune, “It is still illegal to perform an abortion in Texas, including by dispensing or mailing the abortion-inducing medications mifepristone and misoprostol, in most circumstances. Texas’ laws have narrow exceptions only to save the life or prevent ‘substantial impairment of major bodily function’ of a pregnant patient. State laws do not criminalize the person who has an abortion”  (Texas Tribune). This shows that Texas laws focus on the criminalization of the act of abortion rather than prosecuting the pregnant person who gets it. So based on Texas state laws, a woman can not be convicted of murder if she decides to take abortion pills. 

When looking at the source of this claim, I found that Pam Keith is an attorney and former Navy JAG officer. She ran for Florida's 18th Congressional District in the 2020 elections. Keith currently is the CEO of Center for Employment Justice LLC. She seems to be a progressive which makes sense why she would post a tweet like this. Her main point of the tweet is to showcase how abortion laws are about controlling women and nothing else. The tweet got 26K reposts and 100.3K likes which shows high engagement. 

The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/feb/08/texas-man-sentenced-pregnant-wife-abortion-drug 

ABC News: https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/texas-man-sentenced-180-days-jail-drugging-wifes-107063454 

Texas Tribune: https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/11/texas-abortion-law-birth-control-what-you-need-to-know/ and https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/11/texas-abortion-law-birth-control-what-you-need-to-know/ 

Pam Keith’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/PamKeithFL 

Comments

This is an excellent fact-check! I appreciate the depth of research done and the listing of the sources from which you found your information. Your sources are very reliable and well-explained.

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I like the amount of links and sources you used, as well as researched the politician who made the claims.

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This was a very detailed fact check--good job! I think it was helpful you divided the initial claim into all of its parts and debunked/added context to each part. I also think by checking who the politician was, you strengthened your fact check even more.

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This is an extremely well done fact check. The effort you put in is incredible.

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So do you think the claim is false or true? When I read the following from you I assumed it's a false claim? "So based on Texas state laws, a woman can not be convicted of murder if she decides to take abortion pills."

Answer 3

This claim on twitter details how a man slipped his wife abortion pills and was sentenced to 180 days in jail, the claim also details how if the woman had taken them voluntarily she would have been charged with murder. 

 

According to news sites, This is true that a man did in fact slip his wife pills and substances to attempt to induce abortion. The man was convicted of assault on a pregnant person and injury of a child. He was sentenced to 180 days in prison. 

 

https://versustexas.com/texas-abortion-law/

 

According to multiple news sources, Texas law does not create criminal cause of action against mothers only for doctors who perform the abortion or anyone who helps the mother get the abortion. There is no law that would indict the mother on any charges. 

 

So this is true about the first claim but the second is completely false. 

Comments

I really like your fact check. You clearly illustrated the situation and divided it into two subjects. When it comes to the second part of the claim, I think it could be helpful if you added more sources for reference so we can understand the law better.

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I agree that the claim has two aspects to it and I appreciate that you covered both. It is important to highlight that the woman having the abortion will not face criminal charges.

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I really like your fact check and that you went further than just your claim but talked about how slipping these pills can actually incriminate you. After reading your fact check, I would have to agree that it is false, and you won't be incriminated if you as a woman take them voluntarily or a doctor gives them to you.

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Your fact check  was straight to the point and informative. I appreciate the background knowledge you included as well as the end result, letting us know the consequences the man ended up facing.

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Your fact check and source are extremely helpful to make the situation clearer. The original statement is very confusing and can be misleading to readers. It is good that you separated the two instances of a husband tricking his wife into taking pills, and her taking them on her own.

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I like how you included the link to a source that provides clear and concise information on Texas abortion laws to support your claim. However, I wish you would have provided the names or links to the sites that state this man did give his wife substances to induce abortion.

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I like how you divided the sections and had a clear defining sentence at the end. Like Erogers5, I think it would be helpful to have more sources.

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"According to multiple news sources..." and "according to news sites..."  -- which are you referring to? Strong fact-checks are thorough and include full citations and links. Thanks!

Answer 4

This tweet is partially true as it covers two different stories. The husband did drug his wife and caused the baby to have birth defects and be born prematurely. He only got 180 days in jail. The other part of the tweet covers the restrictive abortion laws that Texas has now. It is still unclear if you will be charged with murder for taking an abortion pill, but it is against the law to have an abortion in Texas, and the person and whoever helps her have the abortion could be charged. This tweet does make a valid point about how unfair the laws in Texas are to women if a husband who deliberately tries to murder an unborn child is given such a light sentence.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/08/us/texas-abortion-drug-sentence.html

 

https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/10/texas-abortion-lawsuit/

Comments

I agree with this answer. Did the man slip his wife and abortion pill? Or just a premature pill? Would he get the same sentence if the baby was still born? Just some general questions I have about the laws. You did a great job of going upstream and finding the real information using reliable sources.

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This is a great fact-check! I liked how you concisely explained the situation, which made it easier to understand the complex situation at hand.

Answer 5

The claim that is made in this post is untrue. While people in Texas may face criminal charges for receiving an abortion, they are exempt from facing murder charges. The news source is X which is known to be a place where misinformation spreads. The author is a woman on Twitter who claims to have a law degree. However, she posts lots of far-left propaganda, none of which seems to be based in fact. This content is recent news, and other outlets are reporting that what she is claiming is not true. The claim is written with a clear bias against the state of Texas and their laws.

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/lizelle-herreras-texas-abortion-arrest-warning-rcna24639

Answer 6

The original tweet claims that a man who slipped pills into his wife got sentenced to jail and got to keep his license. It also goes on to claim that women will be charged with murder if they voluntarily have abortions. According to Varghese Summersett, a team of highly trained criminal offense attorneys, the Texas abortion law does not create a criminal case against the mother or parent. It does, however, create a criminal case against the doctor. The Texas abortion law also states that anyone who provided or aided her abortion is open to criminal prosecution. So based on the law, this claim is false in that the woman would not be prosecuted; however, anyone who aids her abortion (the man who slipped her pills) is open for prosecution so that part is true.

The Texas Abortion Law: Here's How it Works - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

What is the Texas Abortion Law? (Dec 2023 Update) - Varghese Summersett PLLC (versustexas.com)

Comments

Nice fact-check. Your sources are good and all offer in-depth and legal explanations for the Texas abortion law. Very good job.

Answer 7

There are two claims in this tweet. The first is that a man in Texas slipped abortion pills to his wife, damaged the fetus, and was sentenced to 180 days in jail. The claim also states he got to keep his law license. This claim is true. Multiple sources such as The New York Times, USA Today, and NBC have reported on the case stating that the baby was born prematurely and has developmental delays. The sources also state that he was sentenced to 180 days in jail. I could not find any information about him keeping his law license, but none of the sources report that he lost his license as a result of the charge. After a google search, I was able to see that he works for Herring Law Firm but the site is under maintenance. So for now I am assuming this claim is true.

The second claim states that if a woman in Texas takes abortion pills, she would be charged with murder. This claim appears to be misleading. According to the Texas Tribune, a woman was charged and arrested in 2022 for having a self-induced abortion. However, these charges were dropped. According to the Texas Tribune "Texas law exempts a pregnant person from being charged with murder or any lesser homicide charge for an abortion. The pregnant person is also typically excluded from lesser criminal charges if abortion laws are broken, as state laws instead target the provider." This article also provides a link that takes you directly to the law stating this on the statutes Texas government site. Therefore, a woman in Texas could with murder for a self-induced abortion, it's happened before, but Texas state law states that a woman is exempt from being charged for this. So, this claim is exaggerated or misleading. I could also not find any other information on a woman being charged with murder for a self-induced abortion since then. 

So while there is truth to this claim, a part of it is misleading and was likely stated to stir up abortion debate.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/08/us/texas-abortion-drug-sentence.html

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/02/08/texas-man-wife-abortion-drugs/72531081007/

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/texas-attorney-poisoned-pregnant-wife-abortion-medication-sentenced-18-rcna138065

https://www.texastribune.org/2022/04/10/starr-county-murder-charge/

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PE/htm/PE.19.htm

Answer 8

If the claim is, “If a woman in Texas takes abortion pills voluntarily, she would be charged with murder.” It would be false. According to the Texas Tribune, “ State laws do not criminalize the person who has an abortion. Some Texans have found ways to get abortions by traveling to other states or Mexico, or self-managing abortions at home by getting medications through international nonprofits, such as Aid Access, or online stores.”  The tweet mentions that the man slipped the pills into the women’s drink and that it severely harmed the fetus. The man was convinced and sentenced to 180 days in prison.

Answer 9

From what I can find this tweet is false. As of 2022 the abortion laws in Texas have been that abortions are not allowed to be performed in any part of the state. Anyone that has one done in the state will not be prosecuted or charged with murder or any other charge, but the person that administers the procedure or gives out the abortion pills will be charged and prosecuted. This tweet is obviously supposed to be propoganda with the upcoming election because abortion is such a touchy and important topic for everyone in America, especially during an election. 

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/23021104/texas-abortion-murder-charge-starr-county

https://versustexas.com/texas-abortion-law/#:~:text=The%202022%20ruling%20allowed%20states,is%20open%20to%20criminal%20prosecution.

Answer 10

This statement is false. There currently isn't any law in Texas that punishes women for self-abortion or miscarriages. There was a case in Texas in April 2022 where a woman was arrested and then released in a similar case. According to the Guardian, "The current law in Texas explicitly exempts women from being policed for any self-managed abortion. The state has attracted considerable attention in recent months after it passed SB 8, legislation that allows private citizens to sue anyone who helps a woman get an abortion as early as six weeks into pregnancy."

PolitiFact offers a source list for their fact check and links to the Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 17A. Performance of abortion.