Closed Mississippi Abortion Center Must Pay Woman Who Nearly Died 
Email this article
Printer friendly page
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
December 28, 2005
Jackson, MS (LifeNews.com) — An abortion business in Mississippi must pay substantial damages to a woman who was injured in a failed abortion in 2003. The New Woman Medical Center abortion facility in Jackson closed last year and its abortion practitioner, Malachy Dehenre, lost his medical license because of botched abortions.
Circuit Judge Winston Kidd awarded Latosha Travis $500,000 in damages after the abortion center failed to respond to her lawsuit. Dehenre and the abortion business were defendants in the suit.
Travis’ attorney, James Noble III, told the Associated Press that a similar default judgment will be issued against Dehenre after he is located.
"He has been evading the process server," Noble said.
Judge Kidd issued the order last week and approved a request from Noble to have four additional months to try to serve Dehenre with the judgment.
But Dehenre’s attorney, Paul Mathis of Greenville, told AP that "We haven’t seen that one," regarding Travis’ lawsuit.
In his judgment, Kidd said enough proof had been submitted to cal for punitive damages along with the $500,000 in compensatory damage. Kidd will allow Noble to take depositions to determine the net worth of the abortion center.
Dehenre closed the abortion business in August 2004 and, in March, the Mississippi state medial board suspended his medical license.
In one case, a woman died 18 hours after having an abortion. The women involved in three other cases had to have hysterectomies to stop massive hemorrhaging from uterine perforations, including Travis.
Noble told AP that Travis nearly died from the abortion she had.
Travis, who was 20 years old at the time and living in Jackson, paid Dehenre $680 for the abortion, the lawsuit said. She had at least one child already and though she planned to have more children in the future, she was devastated to have the hysterectomy because of the failed abortion.
In the case involving a death, Dehenre admitted he should have met the patient at the hospital or relayed medical information to the doctor who treated her.
Related web sites:
Pro-Life Mississippi – https://www.prolifemississippi.org
