Indiana doctor threaten with an investigation into abortion on a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim

•  Indiana doctor who aborted a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim complied with state regulations requiring doctors to report pregnancy terminations 
• Todd Rokita, the state’s attorney general, warned that Dr. Caitlin Bernard may face “criminal prosecution and licensure implications” 
• She added that Rokita, the attorney general, and others who have defamed her client are being targeted by legal action.

The attorney general of Indiana announced on Thursday that he was looking into whether the Indiana doctor who aborted a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim complied with state regulations requiring doctors to report pregnancy terminations and possible child abuse cases.

Todd Rokita, the state’s attorney general, warned that Dr. Caitlin Bernard may face “criminal prosecution and licensure implications” if she didn’t submit the required reports on time in a statement that was published online along with a letter to Indiana’s governor.

Rokita and Eric Holcomb, the governor, are both Republicans.

” According to Rokita’s statement, “We are looking into this matter and waiting for the pertinent documentation to show whether the abortion and/or abuse were reported.” “In Indiana, failing to comply with this becomes a criminal.”

Rokita continued by saying that he would also check to see if the physician had broken any federal patient privacy regulations.

The Indianapolis Star reported it had obtained documents through a public records request showing Bernard had, in fact, complied with the disclosure requirements in a form she filed with the Indiana Department of Health and the Indiana Department of Child Services, making the warning, however, appear to be a hollow threat.

In accordance with the law, as well as with both her medical and ethical training as a physician, Kathleen Delaney, Bernard’s attorney, was also quoted by the newspaper as claiming that her client “did all appropriate and proper action.”

In a statement to the IndyStar, Delaney said, “She followed all pertinent protocols, procedures, and regulations in this matter, just as she does every day to provide the best care for her patients.

She added that Rokita, the attorney general, and others who have defamed her client are being targeted by legal action.

Reuters contacted Delaney directly over the situation, but she did not react right away.

The Indianapolis Star first reported on the 10-year-old Ohio girl who had been sexually assaulted and had fled to Indiana to get an abortion due to an Ohio law that forbade the procedure at six weeks of pregnancy, before many women are even aware they are pregnant, with no exceptions for rape or incest.

When the Ohio girl left her home state to have her pregnancy terminated, she was three days past Ohio’s six-week limit.

The Roe v. Wade ruling, which established a constitutional right to an abortion to end a pregnancy, was overturned by the Supreme Court on June 24. Hours later, the Ohio prohibition went into effect.

In Indiana, abortions after six weeks are still legal, however additional limitations on the practise are anticipated to be discussed by the Republican-controlled state senate later this month.

The 10-year-old Ohio girl’s situation was used as a talking point by pro-abortion advocates and even U.S. President Joe Biden to highlight the practical effects of Roe’s overturn.