Texas Midwife Arrested, Charged With Performing Abortions

In what appears to be the first arrest of an alleged Texas abortion provider since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, a midwife in the state has been criminally charged with illegally providing abortions. Maria Margarita Rojas was arrested alongside an associate accused of working with her, Jose Ley, the New York Times reports. Both face charges of illegal performance of abortion, a second-degree felony, as well as practicing medicine without a license. According to the Guardian, if convicted, the sentence could stretch to decades behind bars. Rojas is a US citizen but Ley is reportedly a Cuban citizen.

Rojas is accused of performing abortions at a number of clinics in the Houston area. "She was on her way to the clinic and got pulled over by the police at gunpoint and handcuffed," a friend tells the Times. "She said they wouldn't tell her what was happening. She said they took her to Austin." Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton does not have authority to enforce criminal laws himself, but the local district attorney says Paxton's office alerted him to the case and he then asked Paxton to handle the prosecution, which is allowed under state law, the Texas Tribune reports. A grand jury will now consider indictment. (More Texas stories.)