GUILTY WI - Authorities say man gave woman abortion pills to induce miscarriages

lisag

Former Member
Joined
Jun 18, 2004
Messages
4,217
Reaction score
37
APPLETON – Authorities are seeking a homicide charge against a man they say caused a woman to miscarry by giving her abortion pills without her knowledge.


Manishkumar M. Patel, 34, of the Town of Kaukauna was arrested Wednesday on charges including stalking, first-degree intentional homicide of an unborn child and reckless endangerment. He’s expected to make an initial appearance in Outagamie County Circuit Court at 3:30 p.m.

Authorities today said the case might be the first of its kind in the country.

According to deputies, the victim sought testing from a California lab after a September miscarriage, which was her second in less than a year.

Tests showed the presence of Mifepristone, which is more commonly known as RU-486. The drug isn’t available by prescription in the U.S.

The victim went to police after receiving the test results Nov. 1.

“It was quite a complicated case,” said Capt. Mike Jobe of the Outagamie County Sheriff’s Department. “There was a lot involved in the investigation.”

Patel and the woman were involved in a relationship before the woman sought the test.

Investigation of the case involved the sheriff’s department, Kaukauna police and the federal Food and Drug Administration. While approved by the FDA, the drug is only available in the U.S. to doctors licensed to it, according to the administration.

Police still aren’t certain how the drug was obtained.

“That’s still a part of our investigation,” Sheriff’s Sgt. Ryan Carpenter said. “We believe he was mailed the drugs from outside the United States.”

Use of the drug put the woman at serious risk of harm, authorities said.

The FDA reports that the drug carries the potential of serious adverse effects, which has included several deaths. Proper administration of the drug requires medical supervision, authorities said.

Officials said Patel acknowledged giving the drug to the woman when investigators interviewed him.

“I think he understands the seriousness of what happened here,” Sheriff’s Sgt. Gary Shortess said. “I don’t think he quite understands the seriousness of the consequences he’s going to be facing.”

more at link:
http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071129/APC0101/71129075/1979
 
I wonder how far along she was? And I'm curious about the effect of a ruling in this case on the abortion discussion.

ETA: what a jerk, btw.
 
Posted December 4, 2007

Outagamie RU-486 case may be a first

Authorities see no precedent in fetal death

By Dan Wilson
Post-Crescent staff writer


APPLETON — The Outagamie County case of a man accused of trying to cause an abortion by spiking his girlfriend's drink appears to have no precedent.


The preliminary hearing set for Monday in the abortion pill case was postponed to Jan. 30 after the suspect, Manishkumar Patel, 34, of the Town of Kaukauna, posted a $750,000 cash bond over the weekend.


Patel, who also goes by Manish, is accused of attempted first-degree intentional homicide for allegedly spiking his pregnant girlfriend's drink with RU-486 on Sept. 17 in Appleton — two weeks before she miscarried.


Although she did not ingest that drink, authorities suspect he may have caused that miscarriage and another one she had about 10 months earlier.


Sheriff's deputies investigating the case have stated they couldn't find any other case of its kind.


Patel is being prosecuted under the state's fetal homicide law that has been in effect since 1998. That law classified unborn children as potential crime victims.


Thirty-seven states have some kind of fetal protection law that covers unborn children in some stage of a mother's pregnancy, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.



More at link:
http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071204/APC0101/712040512/1979
 
This is a scary one for me...a slippery slope. I absolutely support the fact that this man should be punished for causing his unborn baby harm and his mistress. However, there are some principles surrounding choice that need to be protected in my opinion.
 
Well, I know there was another case where a fireman spiked his pregnant girlfriend's drink with a drug to cause an abortion. It wasn't RU486, though. She contacted police and they set up a camera and caught him on camera spiking her drink. She poured the drink into a bottle she had hidden in the bathroom so it could be sent to the lab. I don't remember what he used, except that it was a *NASTY* drug!
 
This is a scary one for me...a slippery slope. I absolutely support the fact that this man should be punished for causing his unborn baby harm and his mistress. However, there are some principles surrounding choice that need to be protected in my opinion.

I'm sorry, but I don't see how anyone can think this guy shouldn't be charged. Regardless of your feelings on abortion, this is evil.

Even if you are totally pro-abortion rights, this seems like the ultimate in the deprivation of choice to me. She chose to keep her baby, and he poisoned the baby to take that choice away from the mom.
 
I'm sorry, but I don't see how anyone can think this guy shouldn't be charged. Regardless of your feelings on abortion, this is evil.

Even if you are totally pro-abortion rights, this seems like the ultimate in the deprivation of choice to me. She chose to keep her baby, and he poisoned the baby to take that choice away from the mom.

Oh, I agree with you angelmom-I agree completely that he took away her choice and decision. He could have used a condom if he wanted to prevent pregnancy-this activity had nothing to do with his "fear" of her pregnancy since he did it at least twice. This was something much subtler and more evil in my opinion.
 
I'm sorry, but I don't see how anyone can think this guy shouldn't be charged. Regardless of your feelings on abortion, this is evil.

Even if you are totally pro-abortion rights, this seems like the ultimate in the deprivation of choice to me. She chose to keep her baby, and he poisoned the baby to take that choice away from the mom.
This should be a very interesting case. Since many people do not look at the 15 week unborn fetus as a human life,*yet*( not viable on it's own) then what would the proper charge be?If the courts decide that the fetus is a separate life, then we will have some interesting debate. Slippery slope someone said? You better believe it.
I am anti-abortion , so I will watch closely.
 
It certainly does seem that this will be a precedent-setting case. One for the law books!
 
This is a scary one for me...a slippery slope. I absolutely support the fact that this man should be punished for causing his unborn baby harm and his mistress. However, there are some principles surrounding choice that need to be protected in my opinion.


I think I understand what you mean, believe. I think that this is a horrible crime and this man should absolutely be charged with murder. However, the fact that Mifepristone was used as the weapon makes me worry that the drug itself will be attacked. It's the same way gun rights supporters feel after horrible shooting homicides, I suppose.
 
Maybe he got a thrill out of secretly causing death. Maybe he intentionally impregnated her so he could play God.

Those are just outgrowths from my depraved mind, btw.

Hey - with a user name like that, we would expect no less!! Welcome to Websleuths.

This should be a fascinating case. Someone please refresh my education - aren't there states where killing an unborn child in the act of killing the mother can bring about a murder charge.

I do understand the slippery slope that believe brings up and will be fascinated with what the Court has to say.
 
Hey - with a user name like that, we would expect no less!! Welcome to Websleuths.

This should be a fascinating case. Someone please refresh my education - aren't there states where killing an unborn child in the act of killing the mother can bring about a murder charge.

I do understand the slippery slope that believe brings up and will be fascinated with what the Court has to say.
You are right SCM. I am thinking that is a fed law ? I can't recall either. laci's law is fed yes? Not sure. I remember if they could have proved that Lori Hacking was pregnant, there would have been more charges or enhancements or something.
 
I'd charge this as murder or close to it - and I'm very strongly pro-choice. Because without his acts, a living baby would have been born, given that the woman did plan to carry to term. I just don't think that for a prospective human, anyone, ever, should be forced to sacrifice their body and health for 9 months - period. My body, my choice. But this wasn't his body, and the person whose choice it was was going to continue. So he did cause the death of something that would have become a human being - and since it wasn't using his body as an incubator, he had no right to do so.
 
I'd charge this as murder or close to it - and I'm very strongly pro-choice. Because without his acts, a living baby would have been born, given that the woman did plan to carry to term. I just don't think that for a prospective human, anyone, ever, should be forced to sacrifice their body and health for 9 months - period. My body, my choice. But this wasn't his body, and the person whose choice it was was going to continue. So he did cause the death of something that would have become a human being - and since it wasn't using his body as an incubator, he had no right to do so.

Good post. I too am pro-choice, but of course this woman's choice was taken from her. I'm not for that at all.
 

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
168
Guests online
2,350
Total visitors
2,518

Forum statistics

Threads
589,981
Messages
17,928,625
Members
228,029
Latest member
Truthseeker158
Back
Top