Woman Declared Brain Dead, Doctors Are Keeping Her Alive Because She Is Pregnant By Law [VIDEO]

This story is so sad.  It’s one thing to loose a loved one, even harder if that loved one was carrying a child at the time of her passing.  In the case of a 30 year old Georgia woman, her family is really going through it.  The woman was declared brain dead, but the law in Georgia requires doctors to keep her alive because she is pregnant.  What’s the families issue?  They don’t get to make the decision.  Because their reality is if the baby even survives birth, it will probably be severely handicapped. 

Adriana Smith, a nurse and mother of one, was nearly nine weeks pregnant in February when she complained of severe headaches.  Northside Hospital gave Smith medicine and sent her home without running any scans.  The next morning, Smith’s boyfriend found her gasping for air. A CT scan later revealed blood clots in her brain. She was declared brain dead and placed on life support.  Doctors recently moved Smith to Emory Midtown to continue care until the fetus is viable, as Georgia’s heartbeat law prevents them from ending the pregnancy.

Her mother, April Newkirk, says to watch her daughter like that has been torturous, and believes that Smith’s family or father of her child should be making the decision, especially after doctors told them the baby has fluid on the brain and “may be blind, may not be able to walk, may not survive once he’s born.”  Her family has been by Adriana Smith’s side every day since, including her young son, who they said still believes his mother is just sleeping.

Under Georgia’s heartbeat law, abortion is banned once cardiac activity is detected — typically around six weeks into pregnancy.  The law includes limited exceptions for rape, incest, or if the mother’s life is in danger. But in Adriana Smith’s case, the law created a legal gray area.

Let’s keep this family uplifted in our prayers

See video below