A baby aborted by a teen mother in Lancaster, Pa., and later buried in the teen's backyard is the topic of an ongoing investigation after further details surfaced from a text exchange the teen mother had with a friend.
Pennsylvanians involved in the pro-life movement say, “women deserve better.”
The incident occurred almost a year ago in April 2024 when the teenager took a pregnancy test and discovered she was pregnant. She went to the local Planned Parenthood to get the abortion pill but was turned away due to her baby’s gestational age being past the allowable 10-week point. A coroner later reported the baby was 20 weeks and 6 days gestation. Pennsylvania law allows surgical abortion up to 24 weeks. The teenager and her mother took matters into their own hands and ordered the pills online.
She consumed them May 9, 2024, and delivered the child in her home May 10.
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According to court documents and reports from local media the teen texted a friend and said, “It just now came out,” then ‘it’s like a full baby’ and ‘it’s still moving.’ The text thread went on to show photos of the baby girl’s genitals and the umbilical cord in a white trash bag. The teen also told her friend she kept the deceased baby in a box under her bed for three weeks.
The friend of the teen was interviewed by police regarding the text exchange on March 6 of this year.
The reports also revealed texts in which the witness asked if the baby cried.
“The teen texted, "yeah we both did when it moved."
Her text also stated, “It has fingernails. Lips. and a nose.”
The Lancaster County Coroner took custody of the baby’s body in mid-March and as of press time no one has been charged with a crime. The coroner ruled the cause of death of the baby, a boy, to be “extreme prematurity prior to viability.”
Jill Hartman is executive director of Lancaster County pregnancy center A Woman’s Concern and a member of the Pennsylvania Pregnancy Wellness Collaborative (PPWC). Hartman was interviewed by numerous local outlets following the release of the information.
She told Harrisburg news station CBS 21 that women need to know all of their options, and they require support.
“They are already scared, they are already frightened,” she said. “We need to step up with knowledge and empowerment."
"The access to the abortion pill has a responsibility by the medical community to make sure it's being used the right way so that women's health is at the forefront, not just direct access to abortion," Hartman said.
Hartman also spoke to Pregnancy Help News via email.
“Federally and at the state level, those disbursing abortion pills must be held accountable to current laws,” she said. “There are significant risks with self-administered abortion pills. Medical oversight is in the best interest of women.” Hartman pointed out that surgical abortion is allowable until 24 weeks, but this individual still chose to try the abortion pill and was granted access by someone somewhere online.
“Access to unregulated abortion pills is not in the best interest of women’s health,” Hartman said.
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Family advocacy organization PA Family addressed the issue on its website.
“In 2020, the PA General Assembly passed a bill that PA Family Institute helped to draft and worked to pass that would have stopped abortion pills from being mailed legally through telemedicine,” the group said. “Former PA Governor and Planned Parenthood escort Tom Wolf vetoed it.”
Hartman was also quoted in the report from PA Life, stating, “Women deserve better.”
Maria Gallagher, executive director of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, echoed Hartman and called the incident “an immense tragedy,” in an email exchange with Pregnancy Help News.
“It is symptomatic of the complications which arise with the use of the abortion drug,” Gallagher said. “The abortion industry markets these dangerous drugs to vulnerable women facing difficult circumstances. The women are then left to deal with the aftermath—often alone, with no support system around them. Pennsylvania women deserve better than this.”
It’s unclear if the Lancaster teen was referred to any other agencies during her Planned Parenthood visit. Gallagher said women need to have all the information necessary when facing a crisis such as this.
“It is important that pregnant women know that there are so many caring individuals who stand ready to help them and their babies,” Gallagher said. “The Keystone State is home to a number of pregnancy resource centers which offer comprehensive counseling and support to pregnant women in need. No woman should feel as if she has to deal with her pregnancy on her own. Life-affirming options for pregnant women abound.”
