Nearly four months after she was declared brain dead while pregnant, a Georgia woman has given birth and her family is now preparing to take her off life support.
On February 19, Adriana Smith — a registered nurse from Atlanta — was declared brain dead after suffering multiple blood clots in her brain. She was about nine weeks pregnant at the time.
Following the 2022 overturn of Roe v. Wade, Georgia enacted a ban on abortion after six weeks gestation. According to law, “no abortion shall be performed if the unborn child has a detectable human heartbeat except in the event of a medical emergency or medically futile pregnancy.”
In the state, “medical emergency” is defined as “a condition in which an abortion is necessary in order to prevent the death of the pregnant woman or the substantial and irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman.”
However, Smith’s case is considered a legal gray area and doctors reportedly told her family that because she is brain dead, and no longer considered at risk, they are legally required to maintain life support until the fetus reaches viability.
