The Indiana doctor who has been at the center of a storm of controversy for providing an abortion to 10-year-old rape victim was previously subject to a kidnapping threat due to her work.
Dr. Caitlin Bernard testified in a case about abortion restrictions in Indiana in 2021 that she had stopped providing first trimester abortions at a South Bend clinic after she was informed about a threat to kidnap her daughter.
Bernard has become the focus of intense discussion after she revealed she had provided an abortion for a 10-year-old girl from Ohio who had been raped and who had crossed state lines into Indiana to get the procedure after the Supreme Court overturned the landmark abortion precedent Roe v. Wade.
As a result of that decision, abortions are now effectively banned in Ohio after six weeks of pregnancy. In Indiana, the limit is 22 weeks.
There was significant skepticism about Bernard's story, particularly from figures in conservative media and some elected Republicans, but it later emerged that her account was accurate.
Gerson Fuentes was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of raping the 10-year-old.
The 27-year-old later confessed to police that he had assaulted the girl on at least two occasions, according to police documents.
Bernard testified under oath about the kidnapping threat in Whole Woman's Health v. Rokita in a federal district court in Indianapolis in June 2021. The FBI had informed Planned Parenthood of the threat, and the organization subsequently informed Bernard.
Bernard, who is based in Indianapolis, had been traveling to a South Bend clinic once a month beginning in 2020 in order to perform first trimester abortions. The trip took two and a half hours but she stopped traveling to South Bend as a result of the threat against her daughter.
"I felt it would be best for me to limit my travel and exposure during that time," Bernard testified in 2021.
"I was concerned that there may be people who would be able to identify me during that travel, as well as it's a very small clinic without any privacy for the people who are driving in and out, and so therefore, people could directly see me," she said.
Kendra Barkoff Lamy, a spokesperson for Caitlin Bernard, issued a statement to Newsweek on Saturday.
"Reports regarding threats against Dr. Bernard's family in 2020 are sadly true. These personal and dangerous threats are obviously devastating to her, a board-certified doctor who has dedicated her life to the betterment of women and providing crucial reproductive care, including abortions," Barkoff Lamy said.
"Sadly, Dr. Bernard is not alone, and this happens to doctors like her who provide abortions across our nation," the statement went on. "The fact that Dr. Bernard continues to provide critical reproductive care, even after she has received these threats, just shows the depth of her compassion and commitment as a physician. She is grateful for the support she has received, but she asks for respect for her family's privacy."
Reporting on the 2021 testimony, The Guardian pointed to the fact that Bernard's name was listed on the website of anti-abortion group Right to Life Michiana.
That group was also reportedly informed by the FBI that the kidnapping threat had been made against Bernard's daughter. Her name and educational details are still listed on Right to Life Michiana's website.
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita has suggested he will investigate Bernard over the recent abortion and accused her of being an "abortion activist acting as a doctor." He told Fox News Bernard had "a history of failing to report" abortions as required in Indiana for patients under 16.
However, The New York Times reported that Bernard had filed the required report within the prescribed three-day reporting period.
"We are gathering evidence from multiple sources and agencies related to these allegations," Rokita told Newsweek in a statement on Friday. "Our legal review of it remains open."
Bernard's attorney, Kathleen DeLaney, said in a statement on Thursday that she and Bernard were "considering legal action against those who have smeared my client, including Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, and know that the facts will all come out in due time."
On Friday, DeLaney sent a cease-and-desist letter to Rokita, accusing him of "false and defamatory statements" that "cast Dr. Bernard in a false light and allege misconduct in her profession."
A spokesperson for Rokita's office told The Indianapolis Star that the letter would be reviewed but "no false or misleading statements have been made."
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Darragh Roche is a U.S. News Reporter based in Limerick, Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. politics. He has ... Read more
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