A Texas district attorney said that he will ask a judge to dismiss a murder charge against Lizelle Herrera over a self-induced abortion.
Herrera was arrested Thursday in Rio Grande City, a community of about 14,000 people along the Mexico border.
She was arrested after a Starr County grand jury indicted her on March 30 for murder for allegedly causing “the death of an individual … by self-induced abortion.”
District Attorney Gocha Allen Ramirez said Sunday that his office would move to dismiss the charge on Monday.
“In reviewing this case, it is clear that Ms. Herrera cannot and should not be prosecuted for the allegation against her,” Ramirez said in a statement.
Ramirez went on to say, “It is my hope that with the dismissal of this case it is made clear that Ms. Herrera did not commit a criminal act under the laws of the State of Texas.”
In a tweet Sunday, Planned Parenthood called the decision “Such NEEDED news.”
“While the charges against Lizelle have been dismissed, we know the fight against the criminalisation of pregnancy outcomes has only just begun,” said Alexis McGill Johnson, Planned Parenthood’s president and CEO.
A leading Texas anti-abortion group said it understood the decision, saying that state law provides only civil remedies, not criminal ones.
Herrera was released Saturday from the Starr County jail after posting a $500,000 bond.
