Brittany Watts: The Tragic Story of a Miscarriage and Criminal Charges

Image: Brittany Watts Miscarriage Controversy

In a shocking turn of events, a 21-year-old woman named Brittany Watts faced criminal charges after experiencing a miscarriage. This incident took place in Ohio, where the debate over abortion rights was already a contentious issue. Watts’ case has sparked a national conversation about the treatment of pregnant women, particularly Black women, in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.

Watts’ ordeal began when she visited a doctor’s office at Mercy Health-St. Joseph’s Hospital in Warren, Ohio. The doctor informed her that her water had broken prematurely, and the fetus she was carrying would not survive. He advised her to have her labor induced, which would amount to an abortion to deliver the nonviable fetus. If she did not follow this advice, she faced a significant risk of death.

Over the next three days, Watts experienced a harrowing series of events. She made multiple trips to the hospital, miscarried into a toilet at her home, and then flushed and plunged the contents. This led to a police investigation of her actions. Ultimately, Watts was charged with abuse of a corpse, a fifth-degree felony punishable by up to a year in prison and a $2,500 fine.

Watts’ case was sent to a grand jury last month, sparking a national firestorm over the treatment of pregnant women, particularly Black women, in the aftermath of the Dobbs decision. Civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump brought attention to her plight on social media, and supporters have raised over $100,000 through GoFundMe for her legal defense, medical bills, and trauma counseling.

The debate within the anti-abortion community regarding whether abortion-seekers should face criminal charges has intensified since the Dobbs decision. Pregnant women like Watts, who was not even trying to get an abortion, have increasingly found themselves charged with “crimes against their own pregnancies.” Grace Howard, an assistant justice studies professor at San José State University, explains that the removal of Roe v. Wade has eliminated the legal roadblock that previously prevented the criminalization of unintentionally harming pregnancies.

Michele Goodwin, a law professor at the University of California, Irvine, and author of “Policing The Womb,” argues that efforts to criminalize pregnancy-related actions have historically targeted Black and brown women. Even before Roe was overturned, studies showed that Black women who visited hospitals for prenatal care were ten times more likely than white women to have child protective services and law enforcement called on them, even when their cases were similar.

In the aftermath of the Dobbs decision, the situation for pregnant women has become increasingly uncertain. Michele Goodwin refers to it as a “wild, wild West,” with district attorneys and prosecutors showing a willingness to prosecute women who violate state laws. Goodwin describes Black women as “canaries in the coal mine” for the hyper-vigilant policing that women of all races may face in the future.

The case of Brittany Watts highlights the complex legal issues surrounding abortion and pregnancy in the United States. Her lawyer, Traci Timko, argues that the hospital where Watts sought care was in a difficult position due to the uncertainty created by the Dobbs decision. Hospital officials were deliberating over the legalities of inducing labor, fearing potential criminal liability.

Watts’ case has drawn attention to the need for clarity on what constitutes a crime in situations like hers. Assistant Justice Studies Professor Grace Howard emphasizes the importance of defining “corpse” under Ohio’s abuse-of-corpse statute. The statute prohibits treating a human corpse in a way that would “outrage” reasonable family or community sensibilities, but there is currently no clear definition of “corpse.”

As the case moves forward, it remains to be seen how the grand jury will rule. However, the story of Brittany Watts serves as a stark reminder of the challenges and uncertainties that pregnant women now face in the United States. The criminalization of miscarriage and the targeting of Black women in particular have raised serious concerns about the impact of the Dobbs decision on reproductive rights and the treatment of pregnant women in the country.