Gerardo "Jerry" Flores is awaiting trial in Texas on murder charges
after the death of his girlfriend Erica Basonia's twin fetuses. He
allegedly stepped on her stomach in order to kill them. The teen was
charged under the state's law protecting unborn children. Basonia,
who was five months pregnant, told investigators she had been
attempting to kill her unborn children for a number of weeks before
asking Flores to step on her stomach. Despite her admission, Basonia
cannot be charged because the Texas law, which is similar to laws in
other states, does not allow prosecution of mothers because they have
a legal right to terminate their pregnancy.
Should the girlfriend also be charged in the matter, despite the
limits of the law? Can the law be changed without addressing the
question of abortion, or is a showdown inevitable?
From all the research I could do, it seems that abortions are
legal in the state of Texas up to 24 weeks, or six months. Basonia
was well within the legal time limit to have an abortion.
A clinical answer was available to her. Texas law only requires
parental notification, not consent, so that would not hinder her from
getting a clinical abortion.
Her boyfriend didn't seem to want the children, so it is unclear
why she felt it necessary to resort to this kind of behavior.
Her way (beating them to death) was less violent than abortion.
The Feminist Women's Health Center says that abortions over 13 weeks
are done by dilation and extraction. This is the controversial
"partial-birth abortion" that has dominated the news, also called
"intact dilation and extraction." The child is pulled from the womb
with forceps while keeping the head inside. A sharp object is used to
penetrate the skull and the brain is suctioned out, causing the skull
to collapse. This allows the head to exit easier.
Abortion provider Abortion Advantage of Texas says an "injection
of medication is made into the amniotic fluid surrounding the
pregnancy to assure that it will be stillborn and will not experience
any discomfort during the procedure."
Like the Terri Schiavo case, why are they so worried about the
comfort of the patient if it isn't human or doesn't have feelings?
I am sorry I am so graphic, but we need to realize that the
violence the girl inflicted, with the help of her boyfriend, is no
worse than the violence she would have inflicted on her twin boys had
she done it in a clinic. It is impossible to say that one is crueler
than the other.
