A Texas man has filed a lawsuit against three women, whom he believes helped his ex-wife obtain medication for an abortion.
This man, named Marcus Silva, is accusing the women, who were friends of his ex-wife, of wrongful death and is seeking over $1 million in damages from each of them.
He argues that their alleged involvement in procuring the abortion medication amounts to aiding murder under Texas law.
Texas man files a wrongful death lawsuit
According to CNN, the Texas man, Marcus Silva, has filed a lawsuit against three women, claiming that they helped his ex-wife obtain medication for an abortion.
This is the first lawsuit filed under Texas' new near-total abortion ban, which prohibits abortion once cardiac activity can be detected, which typically occurs around six weeks of pregnancy.
The ban also makes it a crime for anyone to aid a pregnant person in accessing the procedure.
Silva alleges that his ex-wife discovered she was pregnant in July 2022, a month after the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade, and a month before Texas' trigger ban went into effect.
Two of his ex-wife's friends allegedly provided her with information about Aid Access, an international group that provides abortion pills via mail, and they appeared to figure out a way to obtain the medication in Houston.
While the third woman allegedly delivered the abortion medication to his ex-wife.
Silva is pursuing damages exceeding $1 million from each woman, asserting that their purported involvement in obtaining abortion medication qualifies as assisting in a murder, according to Texas law.
The legal action does not include Silva's former spouse as a defendant since she is exempted from liability under Texas law for having undergone the abortion.
The lawsuit also consists of text messages that the women allegedly shared with each other.
Silva's ex-wife expressed concern that he would use the situation against her and try to force her to stay with him.
Texas abortion ban
According to ABC, the complaint intends to sue the manufacturer of the medication once it is identified.
Wendy Davis, the senior adviser of Planned Parenthood Texas Votes, condemned Silva's lawsuit, calling it a direct result of the dangerous policies championed by Governor Greg Abbott and his supporters.
The legal action asserts that Silva's former spouse discovered her pregnancy in July of 2022, one month after the decision in Roe v. Wade was overturned one month before the activation of Texas' trigger ban.
However, the ex-wife is not listed as a defendant in the civil case. Divorce records reveal that she filed for divorce in May of 2022, which was finalized in February.
The complaint emphasizes that she is protected from responsibility under Texas law as the individual who received the abortion, and Silva has no intentions of pursuing any claims against her.
Axiom reports that, according to the lawsuit, the abortion was performed in July. However, at the time, the state's trigger ban had not yet taken effect, and the law became enforceable in late August.
While Texas' trigger ban states that providing an abortion could be considered a first-degree felony, punishable by life imprisonment or a term between five to 99 years, it makes no mention that abortion should be considered murder.
The lawsuit has drawn criticism from pro-choice advocates, who argue that it is an attack on reproductive rights and an attempt to intimidate people who support access to abortion.
