On Thursday afternoon, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita doubled down on the outrage after a 10-year-old rape victim traveled to his state for an abortion—going so far as to suggest that the doctor involved could face criminal charges for not reporting the procedure.
But mere hours later, his claims were smashed to bits when a local TV station published documents showing Dr. Caitlin Bernard had properly reported the abortion.
In response to Rokita’s threats, Bernard’s lawyer alleged the AG had “smeared” her client, adding that a lawsuit against him is now on the table.
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“My client, Dr. Caitlin Bernard, took every appropriate and proper action in accordance with the law and both her medical and ethical training as a physician,” Kathleen DeLaney said. “She followed all relevant policies, procedures, and regulations in this case, just as she does every day to provide the best possible care for her patients. She has not violated any law, including patient privacy laws, and she has not been disciplined by her employer.”
A 27-year-old Guatemalan national, Gerson Fuentes, was arrested Tuesday for allegedly raping the Ohio girl on May 12. The girl became pregnant and on June 22, her mother alerted child services in the state who, in turn, alerted Columbus police, Detective Jeffrey Huhn said Wednesday.
Eight days later, the girl, who was six weeks and three days pregnant, traveled to Indianapolis for an abortion because Ohio had outlawed the procedure after six weeks in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.
Bernard, who first mentioned the girl’s plight to the Indianapolis Star, generating international headlines and even garnering a mention from President Joe Biden, said the girl was referred to her by a child abuse doctor in Ohio.
Rokita initially complained on Fox News on Wednesday night that Bernard was an “abortion activist acting as a doctor” who has a “history of failing to report” child abuse cases—a claim he did not substantiate.
He also called it a “horrible, horrible scene caused by Marxists and socialists and those in the White House who want lawlessness at the border.” (The Daily Beast confirmed Fuentes is allegedly undocumented; his public defender said he had been living in Ohio for at least seven years.)
On Thursday, Rokita escalated his campaign against Bernard, issuing a statement and an open letter seemingly implying, without evidence, that she may have failed to report the rape or the abortion.
“We are investigating this situation and are waiting for the relevant documents to prove if the abortion and/or the abuse were reported, as Dr. Caitlin Bernard had requirements to do both under Indiana law,” Rokita said. “The failure to do so constitutes a crime in Indiana, and her behavior could also affect her licensure. Additionally, if a HIPAA violation did occur, that may affect next steps as well.”
“I will not relent in the pursuit of the truth,” he added.
Under Indiana law, a physician who suspects child abuse must report it to authorities immediately. Physicians are also required to report all abortions performed on patients under 16 to both the health department and child services within three days.
But as it turns out, Bernard did just that, reporting the procedure and the abuse to the Department of Health within three days, the documents obtained by FOX59 through a public records request show.
The Daily Beast also received the report on Friday via a public records request. The report notes that the patient is seeking an abortion as a result of “abuse” and says that the procedure was reported to Indiana’s Department of Child Services on July 2, the same day the report was filed and received by the health department.
Accompanying Rokita’s statement was a letter he had sent to Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb requesting that Holcomb direct state agencies to immediately produce documents about any reports made by Bernard.
He said his staff had asked the state’s Department of Health for any termination of pregnancy reports filed in the last 30 days and were told it would take longer than usual to find because the department was using a new system.
He claimed the Department of Child Services didn’t respond to requests for similar documentation.
Bernard wrote in a tweet Wednesday that she was “sad” that the U.S. continues to fail victims of sexual assault.
Read it at State of Indiana
