Demands for abortion law reform after mum-of-three jailed for ending pregnancy

Parliament must consider overhauling abortion rules after a mum-of-three was jailed for carrying out a late abortion on her baby of 32 to 24 weeks, a senior Tory has said.

Caroline Nokes, chairwoman of the Commons Women and Equalities Committee, joined women’s rights groups in calling for reform to the “out-of-date” 1861 legislation used to prosecute the woman, who we are not naming.

The 44-year-old was handed a 28-month extended sentence for inducing an abortion outside the legal limit using pills at home. The woman was sent the drugs by the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) during the Covid lockdown in 2020 after she lied about how far along in her pregnancy she was, Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard.

Abortions are generally only legal before 24 weeks and are carried out in clinics after 10 weeks of pregnancy. The woman was between 32 and 34 weeks pregnant when she took pills - eight to 10 weeks later than the legal period for having an abortion in England, Scotland and Wales.

The prosecution said the woman made several internet searches between February and May 2020, including “how to hide a pregnancy bump”, “how to have an abortion without going to the doctor” and “how to lose a baby at six months”.

She was initially charged with child destruction and pleaded not guilty, before later pleading guilty to an alternative charge of section 58 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, administering drugs or using instruments to procure abortion, which was accepted by the prosecution.

Campaigners are now demanding reform after she received a sentence of 28 months, 14 of which will be spent in custody. Ms Nokes told BBC Radio 4’s World Tonight programme: “This is not something that has been debated in any great detail for many years now.

“And cases like this, although tragic and fortunately very rare, do throw into stark relief that we are reliant on legislation that is very, very out of date. I think that makes a case for Parliament to start looking at this issue in detail.”

Centre for Women’s Justice director Harriet Wistrich questioned how the prosecution was in the public interest , as she slammed the “utterly misdirected criminal justice system”.

She said: “What possible purpose is served in criminalising and imprisoning this woman, when at most she needs better access to healthcare and other support? She is clearly already traumatised by the experience and now her children will be left without their mother for over a year.

“When most forms of violence against women and girls go unpunished this sentence confirms our very worst fears about contemporary attitudes to women’s basic human rights and an utterly misdirected criminal justice system.”

Women’s human rights programme director at Amnesty International UK Chiara Capraro described the decision to prosecute as “shocking and quite frankly terrifying”, which highlights the need for legal reform.

Meanwhile, BPAS chief executive Clare Murphy said “no woman can ever go through this again” as she called for MPs to protect women in desperate circumstances so they are never threatened with prison. She said: “Vulnerable women in the most incredibly difficult of circumstances deserve more from our legal system.”

The Crown Prosecution Service said the case was “complex and traumatic”, but insisted it has a duty to ensure laws are “properly considered and applied when making difficult charging decisions”.

The court heard the woman, who had three sons before becoming pregnant again in 2019, did not see a doctor about her pregnancy because she was “embarrassed” and did not know how far along she was.

She spoke to a BPAS nurse practitioner in May 2020 and was sent abortion pills in the post after it was determined she was only around seven weeks pregnant based on her answers.

A post-mortem examination determined the child was between 32 and 34 weeks’ gestation when born, and her cause of death was recorded as stillbirth and maternal use of abortion drugs. The woman will serve 14 months in custody and the remainder on licence after her release.

Sentencing judge Mr Justice Pepperall said: “This case concerns one woman’s tragic and unlawful decision to obtain a very late abortion. The balance struck by the law between a woman’s reproductive rights and the rights of her unborn foetus is an emotive and often controversial issue. That is, however, a matter for Parliament and not for the courts.”

In a statement on Tuesday, Downing Street said there were no plans to change abortion laws or sentencing guidelines. The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “Through the Abortion Act, all women have access to safe abortions on the NHS up to 24 weeks and we have made changes so that now includes taking abortion pills at home. We think this approach provides the right balance and… there are no plans to change this.”

The spokesman added: “We recognise that this is a highly emotive issue and obviously we recognise that the strength of feeling on all sides.”