Dr. Caitlin Bernard, an obstetrician-gynecologist in Indiana, told news outlets earlier this month that she was contacted by a colleague in Ohio seeking help for their 10-year-old patient three days after the state banned abortion in the wake of Roe v. Wade Superior Court. The girl was six weeks and three days pregnant, according to Dr. Bernard. Ohio’s “fetal heartbeat” law — enacted hours after the Supreme Court ruled to end the constitutional right to abortion care on June 24 — bans abortions at about six weeks of pregnancy, with no exceptions for rape or incest. Police were alerted to a referral from Franklin County Children’s Services made by the girl’s mother on June 22, according to testimony at Fuentes’ July 13 arraignment, as reported by the Columbus Dispatch. On June 30, the girl received an abortion in Indianapolis, Indiana. Abortion is prohibited in Indiana after 22 weeks of pregnancy, with some exceptions for medical emergencies. Mr. Rokita told Fox News in an interview Wednesday night that his office had launched an investigation into the doctor’s actions. “We are gathering the evidence as we speak and will fight this to the end, including looking at her license if she does not report it. And in Indiana it’s a crime … to intentionally fail to report,” Rokita told Fox News host Jesse Watters on Wednesday. Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita said ‘we’re going to fight this to the end’ (Facebook) “This is a child, and there is a strong public interest in understanding whether someone under 16 or under 18, or really any woman, is getting an abortion in our state.” Gerson Fuentes, 27, of Columbus, Ohio, was arrested on July 12 and charged with raping the young woman. Waters used his show to dispute the story for much of last week, calling it “politically timed disinformation” and openly saying it was a “hoax” on July 11. During his show with Mr. Rokita on July 13, Waters inexplicably took credit for the “deconstruction” of justice after Mr. Fuentes was arrested for the crime and then called out Dr. Bernard for her handling of the condition. Flashing her photo on the screen, Waters went so far as to argue that the doctor should face criminal charges. His brazen turn sparked outrage on social media, where he was accused of spreading a “disgraceful smear”. “Jesse Waters has no shame, no soul,” wrote one Twitter user. Jess Watters has “no shame, no soul,” said one social media user (Associated Press) Many called on him to retract his previous statements, apologize or resign. “When will you formally apologize to the family of the 10-year-old girl who was raped and drenched and whom you accused of lying?” asked another. In addition to Waters, many other right-wing media figures and outlets have been quick to undermine the case, questioning its veracity and accusing the news outlet of engaging in a disinformation campaign to preserve abortion rights, while attacking Dr. Bernard’s legitimacy. On Fox News on July 12, Tucker Carlson claimed the case was “not true.” Republican Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost — who filed a motion to dissolve the injunction blocking the state’s anti-abortion law minutes after the Supreme Court’s decision — claimed on the show that there was “not the slightest indication that this had happen there.” He also told USA Today that the case is “most likely” a “fabrication.” The Wall Street Journal editorial board on July 12 called the case an “improbable story from a biased source that fits the progressive narrative perfectly, but cannot be confirmed.” The editorial cites website PJ Media and author Megan Fox, whose doubts about the case’s existence went viral among right-wing social media users. He celebrated her appearance on Fox News and wrote afterward that the case “should now be relegated to the farce category.” Last week, Dr Bernard told the Independent that the girl at the center of the case was “not alone”. “These are, unfortunately, the real consequences of banning abortion,” he said. “All states have pregnant women who need abortion care, in the most extreme and the most common circumstances, and everyone deserves to have access to comprehensive reproductive health care in a state in which they live.”
