Police Investigating Death of Irish Resident After Abortion In UK

Police in the UK have launched an investigation into the case of a woman who died after travelling from Dublin to London for an abortion.

The 32-year-old, who was a foreign national and legally residing in Ireland, reportedly died from "internal blood loss" in a taxi only a matter of hours after having a termination at a Marie Stopes clinic in west London.

According to The Irish Times the woman made the decision to go to Britain for an abortion after she was told by a maternity hospital in Dublin that it was not possible to have one in this jurisdiction. She was 20 weeks into her pregnancy.

She also had a condition that, while not life-threatening, raised the risk of miscarriage. Her first pregnancy was traumatic and complicated by extensive fibroids.

The husband of the woman, who died in January 2012, told The Irish Times: “We were worried about what would happen when she became pregnant again. She was sick, but we were told that nothing could be done in Ireland.”

The couple, who were both on student visas at the time, would have taken action sooner but they apparently discussed a number of options and had to raise the necessary funds before they made the decision to seek help in the UK.

The father-of-one explained that they weren’t given any advice or support before adding that he now wants answers: “I think if this was an Irish or British woman, we would know what happened to her. But I am still waiting for answers.”

The London Metropolitan Police confirmed that it is preparing a file for the Crown Prosecution Services. There has been no inquest as yet due to the ongoing police investigation.

 

The procedure was carried out at a Marie Stopes clinic in London.