An Ohio woman who miscarried in a toilet is facing a charge of abuse of a corpse in "an extremely rare interpretation of a state law," per the New York Times. The case "has touched off a national firestorm," with some arguing Brittany Watts acted as many women in her situation do, per the AP. Watts, in her early 30s, was 21 weeks and five days pregnant when she visited a hospital Sept. 19 and learned her fetus was nonviable. After waiting eight hours for an ethics panel to determine whether she could be induced to deliver the fetus in what would constitute an abortion, Watts later left the hospital "against medical advice," a coroner's report reads, per CNN. She returned the next day but again left. At that time, the right to abortion in Ohio was enshrined up to 21 weeks and six days of pregnancy, her lawyer tells the AP.
The Times notes that Watts passed the fetus at home on Sept. 22 before again visiting the hospital, which notified police of "the need to locate the fetus," per the coroner's report. According to police, Watts claimed to have disposed of the remains in her backyard, but the fetus was instead found clogging a toilet. An autopsy confirmed it was a stillbirth delivery, but Watts was charged with felony abuse of a corpse under a law that bars the treatment of "a human corpse in a way that the person knows would outrage" family or community "sensibilities." Many legal experts take issue with the interpretation of "human corpse" to include a stillborn fetus. Case Western Reserve University law professor Jessie Hill says that prosecutors are arguing a nonviable fetus is "a person," a claim that would never be applied in the case of a hospital delivery.
"If we are going to require people to collect and bring used menstrual products to hospitals so that they can make sure it is indeed a miscarriage, it's as ridiculous and invasive as it is cruel," argues Grace Howard, assistant justice studies professor at San Jose State University, per the AP. Thousands of health care workers and community leaders have signed a letter calling for Trumbull County prosecutor Dennis Watkins to dismiss the "unwarranted" charge against Watts, punishable by up to a year in prison and a $2,500 fine. "We have no doubt that women facing the threat of jail time and hefty fines will conceal the fact that they have miscarried and refuse to seek treatment," the letter reads, per the Vindicator. A grand jury decision on an indictment, expected Wednesday, was postponed for a couple of weeks. (More Ohio stories.)
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