A woman in the United Kingdom has been sentenced to 28 months in prison for illegally obtaining abortion pills past the legal limit. The 44-year-old mother of three received the pills via mail, exploiting a pandemic-era policy that allowed for remote consultations and medication abortion up to 10 weeks of pregnancy.
The woman, who has not been publicly identified, admitted to violating the 1861 Offenses against the Person Act by acquiring the abortion-inducing pills. She will serve half of her sentence in custody and the remainder under license.
The presiding judge, Justice Pepperall, acknowledged the woman's remorse and mental health struggles, including depression, nightmares, and flashbacks. However, he emphasized the seriousness of the offense, stating that the woman knowingly misrepresented the stage of her pregnancy to access the medication. The judge noted her "high culpability" due to her awareness of exceeding the 24-week legal limit for abortions and her deliberate deception to utilize telemedical services.
The court heard that the woman discovered her pregnancy in December 2019 and consulted with the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) in May 2020. At approximately 28 weeks pregnant, she falsely claimed to be under 10 weeks to obtain the pills. Abortions are generally legal up to 24 weeks in England, Scotland, and Wales, but after 10 weeks, they must be performed in a hospital setting.
Medical professionals later estimated the fetal age to be between 32 and 34 weeks. The woman's defense team highlighted her mental health challenges, profound remorse, and inability to cope with the aftermath of her actions, arguing for family support rather than imprisonment.
