by Cheryl Sullenger | Cleveland, OH | LifeNews.com | 7/1/14 

Operation Rescue has obtained the autopsy report of a woman who died from abortion complicationsthat shows evidence of standard of care problems at the Preterm Abortion Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

Lakisha Wilson, 22, received a late-term abortion at Preterm on March 21, 2014. Sometime after the abortion, Wilson stopped breathing, according to 911 records, and was transported to Chase University Medical Center, where she was placed on life support and pronounced dead on March 28.

The autopsy report show evidence that Wilson was not properly monitored after her abortion, a lapse that may have prevented her from receiving emergency care in time to save her life.

According to the report, Wilson suffered from “uterine atony,” which is a condition where the uterus does not properly contract after the abortion and thus leads to hemorrhage. Wilson suffered blood loss and went into shock, which was not immediately detected, or she would have been treated and stabilized.

Wilson did receive medications at Preterm that cause uterine contractions in an apparent effort to control the hemorrhage, but it appeared to be too little, too late.

Depressed respiration caused by sedation administered by abortion clinic personnel may have contributed to the lack of oxygen Wilson’s body received, compounding the medical crisis she experienced due to blood loss. As a result, Wilson suffered cardiopulmonary arrest and subsequent fatal brain damage while at the Preterm Abortion Clinic before paramedics were called.

“If Lakisha had been monitored properly, early signs of distress would have been rapidly detected and treated before she had deteriorated to the point of cardiopulmonary arrest,” said Troy Newman, President of Operation Rescue. “Because there is now reason to believe that negligence was involved, we call upon Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty to launch a criminal investigation into the death of Lakisha Wilson and act quickly bring those responsible to justice.”

The autopsy report indicated that Wilson’s pre-born baby was 19.4 weeks gestation at the time of Wilson’s abortion, although no fetal remains were present during the autopsy. The Medical Examiner appears to have relied on abortion records for that information.

Wilson’s heart, lungs, liver, and kidneys were donated prior to the autopsy.

A coalition of pro-life groups have worked together to call attention to the Wilson tragedy and the fact that urban women of color are all too often targeted for abortion. The groups also demand the closure of the Preterm abortion facility as well as additional abortion reforms to protect women.

Groups involved include Cleveland Right to Life, Right to Life of Northeast Ohio, National Black Pro-Life Union, Life Issues Institute, Inc., Created Equal, African-American Outreach for Priests for Life, Issues4Life Foundation, Operation Rescue, and several local pastors and activists.

We are urging the public to contact Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty and urge his office to investigate Lakisha Wilson’s death.

Phone: 216.443.7800

LifeNews.com Note: Cheryl Sullenger is a leader of Operation Rescue, a pro-life that monitors abortion practitioners and exposes their illegal and unethical practices.