ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – A day after a judge struck down Georgia's six-week abortion ban, the family of a mother who died after allegedly receiving delayed abortion care in 2022 is speaking out.
Amber Thurman, 28, had a rare complication from her abortion medications and went to Piedmont Henry Hospital in Stockbridge for surgery to remove tissue from her uterus. However, according to Ben Crump, the family's attorney, doctors waited 20 hours to perform dilation and curettage, which allegedly led to her death.
Crump said the family plans to file a medical malpractice lawsuit.
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The lawsuit comes as a Fulton County Superior Court judge on Monday took up Georgia's Life Law, which bans abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected. In most cases this is around six weeks.
“It’s bittersweet for this family,” Crump said during a news conference Tuesday. “Because while it will likely prevent other women in the state of Georgia from being put in danger like Amber was for the foreseeable future, it was not intended to save Amber’s life.”
Thurman died two weeks after the LIFE Act took effect. Attorney Michael Harper said the law provides for two exceptions – if there is a medical emergency and the fetus is not viable. Thurman's situation meets both conditions, he argued during the press conference.
“Under Georgia’s heartbeat law, her life still should have been saved,” he said.
Thurman's mother, Shanette Williams, claimed the hospital left the family in the dark about the incident.
“I want to understand this. I want to know why. Because as her mother, that’s the hardest thing,” she said. “We would have done anything if we had known that. But we didn’t.”
Cjauna Williams, one of Thurman's sisters, FaceTimed Thurman shortly before she was admitted for the procedure. She said Thurman's face was blue.
“She looked deep into my soul. And to this day, that face, that look, haunts me every day,” she said. “Did she really have to be the victim?”
Abortion – and the swing state of Georgia – are crucial to the 2024 presidential election. After ProPublica Thurman's report was published, the news spread on social media and put Georgia back on the national stage.
Kamala Harris spoke directly about Thurman during a speech in Georgia on September 20th.
“She was loved,” Harris said. “And she should still be alive today.”
On Tuesday night, Thurman's story came up during the vice presidential debate between Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Ohio Sen. JD Vance as they discussed reproductive rights.
Walz misrepresented Thurman's death in the debate, saying she drove “600 miles” to North Carolina to have an abortion and died “in the back and forth.”
“There is a young woman named Amber Thurman,” Walz said. “She happened to be in Georgia, a restrictive state. Because of this, she had to make a long trip to North Carolina to receive treatment. Amber Thurman died on this return trip. The fact is: How can we as a nation say that your life and your rights, as fundamentally as the right to your own body, are determined by geography? There is a very real chance that Amber Thurman would still be alive today if she had lived in Minnesota.”
After the debate, Thurman's family released the following statement through Crump's law firm:
“Tonight we commend Governor Tim Walz for telling Amber’s story and for his unwavering commitment to defending women’s reproductive rights. Amber's tragic death was a direct result of Georgia's outdated and dangerously restrictive abortion laws, which denied her the life-saving care she so desperately needed.
“We strongly condemn the Republican platform that seeks to further restrict women's access to necessary health care under the false guise of protection. We mourn an unimaginable loss that no family should have to endure. We still have to fight against laws that endanger women's lives, and we are grateful for leaders like Governor Walz who stand up for common-sense laws while showing so much compassion.
“The fight for justice for Amber is a fight for every woman’s right to make decisions about her own body and access the medical care she needs. We will not stop until these dangerous laws are repealed and no more lives are lost. Until then, we have to say your name: Amber Thurman! “
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