A Texas district attorney announced Sunday his office will drop a murder charge against a woman for an alleged "self-induced abortion."
Catch up fast: Lizelle Herrera, 26, was arrested Thursday and held at the Starr County jail in Rio Grande City until Saturday. She was charged with murder for causing "the death of an individual by self-induced abortion."
Driving the news: Gocha Allen Ramirez, district attorney for Duval, Jim Hogg and Starr counties, said his office will file to dismiss the murder charge against Herrera on Monday.
- "In reviewing applicable Texas law, it is clear that Ms. Herrera cannot and should not be prosecuted for the allegation against her," Ramirez said.
- He added: "The issues surrounding this matter are clearly contentious, however, based on Texas law and the facts presented, it is not a criminal matter."
The big picture: Texas has the most restrictive abortion ban in the U.S. The law, Senate Bill 8 (S.B. 8), took effect last September.
- Surrounding states have seen a nearly 800% rise in abortion patients from Texas from Sept. 1 to Dec. 31, 2021, Axios' Oriana Gonzalez writes.
