Brittany Watts: A Woman Arrested For the Crime of Suffering a Miscarriage
- Prisha
- Feb 2, 2024
- 4 min read
Who: Brittany Watts is a 34-year-old Black woman from Ohio who was tried in a felony case for abuse of a corpse after she miscarried a nonviable fetus into her toilet. She was not indicted.
What: Watts' story began in the second trimester of her pregnancy when she was 21 weeks and five days into the pregnancy. On September 19th, 2023, she was admitted to St. Joseph Warren Hospital in Youngstown, Ohio, for vaginal bleeding. At the hospital, she was told that the fetus still had a faint heartbeat, but it was no longer viable. After waiting for eight hours at the hospital for medical assistance, Watts left against medical advice. The next day, she returned to the hospital expecting an induced labor procedure, but once again spent eleven hours there without receiving any such attention. The cause of these long wait times was the fact that her case had been referred to the hospital's ethics department. They were concerned about whether they could perform the medical procedure because Watts used the term "abortion" about the medical procedure she was receiving. This was of particular concern due to Ohio's strict abortion laws that only allow the procedure up to 22 weeks, under the exception of a life-threatening situation. This referral to the ethics department occurred even though doctors recognized she would need immediate medical attention to prevent the pregnancy from becoming fatal for her. Furthermore, Watts was unaware that the ethics committee was involved with her case until the end of the second day. Once again, she left the hospital without treatment. Two days later, experiencing agonizing pain, Watts miscarried in her toilet at home. She reported flushing the blood down the toilet and plunging the remains, storing them in a bucket in her backyard. Afterward, she reported to the hospital and informed them about the miscarriage. The nurse who attended to her then called the police and had the following telephone conversation (interjections/ filler words have not been transcribed):
Nurse: "I had a mother who had a delivery at home and came in without the baby. And I need someone to go find this baby or direct me on what I need to do."
Dispatch: "Did she say if the baby was alive or not?"
Nurse: "She said she didn't want to look. She said she didn't want the baby and she didn't look."
Watts said on a television interview that she had only said that she did not want to look, and not that she did not want her baby.
Authorities showed up at Watts' home, and one of them reported feeling a part of the fetus upon plunging his hand into the toilet -- a foot and toes. It was also reported that the toilet had overflowed with stool, tissue, and blood clots. The toilet was broken apart and the remaining parts of the fetus were then recovered.
Watts was then tried for the felony of the abuse of a corpse. The prosecution stated “The issue isn’t how the child died when the child died. It’s the fact that the baby was put into a toilet, large enough to clog up the toilet, left in that toilet, and she went on her day.” Medical examiners testified that the fetus had died in utero, and due to the vagueness of the prosecution's case, the grand jury did not indict Watts.
Why is this an issue? The main issue with this particular case is the language being used. The nonviable fetus was described by the prosecutors as a "child" and "baby" and the miscarriage was described by the nurse as a "delivery." Not only that, but the case passed the preliminary hearing under the charge of "abuse of a corpse," implying the abuse of a living, breathing entity that had passed. This language not only demonizes Watts but also reveals the uneducated attitudes of the prosecution. The fact that a non-viable fetus was considered a person speaks volumes about the sentiments that are deemed appropriate in a court of law, and puts Ohio's restrictive abortion bans into perspective. Furthermore, the fact that despite the doctor's recommendations to give Watts medical care immediately due to the fatal nature of her pregnancy, the ethics of the procedure were debated for hours on end showcases the hypocrisy in claiming to be "pro-life." Lastly, the fact that a nurse used her position to throw Watts into the midst of this crisis, breaking patient confidentiality, while her name was not to be found anywhere, showcases starkly the lack of justice in this case.
Additional Notes: This case demonstrates several points, but one of the major ones is the importance of nuance. When I was first reading about this, I, too was caught by surprise by how one could flush the remains of their pregnancy down the drain. Initial shock about what seems to be an unusual situation is valid because it is difficult for most to comprehend what a 21-week-old fetus looks like, and to what degree it resembles a delivered baby. But these are emotional reactions, inapplicable in a court of law. They cannot refute the fact that the fetus does not even have sentience before twenty-four weeks and that this particular fetus was nonviable and a threat to the mother's life. Nuance is also required because no matter what one's initial reaction is upon learning of this case, it is crucial to think about Watts. As a pregnant woman who had been going through complications in her pregnancy and had experienced a traumatic miscarriage, she was cast into the throes of public coverage and court trials surrounding what was likely one of the worst experiences of her life. However, instead of privately being able to receive empathy and care, she was forced to relive this trauma in the courtroom and justify her actions. This is particularly heartbreaking to me; to go through such a harrowing experience as a miscarriage and still have to keep fighting for oneself instead of being allowed to heal. She was reduced to a name attached to this painful incident she had experienced.
So, although Watts' story may cause shock and even discomfort, it does not justify the trials that she had to endure afterward.
Remember to get educated and use your voice!
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