Key facts
- Tierra Walker, 37, died in December 2024 from preeclampsia, a pregnancy complication, while 20 weeks pregnant.
- Her family alleges doctors refused her requests for an abortion, despite her condition worsening and qualifying for an exception.
- A lawsuit names Texas AG Ken Paxton, state medical board, University of Texas health system, and doctors as defendants.
- The suit claims the state's abortion ban violates the Texas and U.S. constitutions and led to Walker's death.
- Texas law prohibits abortions except for life-threatening medical emergencies.
The family of Tierra Walker has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, doctors, and state health officials, alleging that the state's near-total abortion ban contributed to her death. Walker, 37, died in December 2024 from preeclampsia, a dangerous pregnancy-related high blood pressure condition, while 20 weeks pregnant.
The lawsuit, filed in Bexar county district court, claims Walker and her family repeatedly requested an abortion as her condition worsened, but doctors allegedly refused to provide the treatment, despite it being a potential intervention for her condition. Attorneys for the family allege that Paxton, the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, and several doctors were responsible for "deliberate indifference, discrimination, and medical mistreatment" that caused her death.
The legal action also names the executive director of the Texas Medical Board, Stephen Brint Carlton. The lawsuit challenges Texas' abortion ban as unconstitutional, asserting that Paxton and Carlton deprived Walker of her right to life by enforcing a "merciless blanket prohibition" on abortion. Texas law prohibits abortions with limited exceptions for life-threatening medical emergencies, and providers face significant criminal and civil penalties.