Family of pregnant woman who died sues Ken Paxton for wrongful death

Tierra Walker, a 37-year-old woman from San Antonio, passed away in December 2024 while 20 weeks pregnant. She had been diagnosed with pre-eclampsia, a severe pregnancy-related condition characterized by dangerously high blood pressure, which can lead to death. Walker's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Ken Paxton, the Texas Attorney General, the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, multiple doctors, and other defendants.

The lawsuit claims that Paxton, the UT Health System, and individual medical professionals engaged in "deliberate indifference, discrimination, and medical mistreatment" that led to Walker's tragic demise. According to the legal action, Walker and her family repeatedly requested an abortion as her condition deteriorated, leading to seizures and blood clots.

However, her family asserts that medical professionals denied her the requested treatment. The lawsuit also challenges Texas' abortion ban as unconstitutional, arguing that Paxton and the executive director of the Texas Medical Board, Stephen Brint Carlton, violated Walker's fundamental right to life by implementing a "merciless blanket prohibition" on abortion and failing to provide necessary medical care.

Paxton, a Republican candidate for Senate, has staunchly defended Texas' abortion ban and has even filed lawsuits against doctors and organizations accused of sending abortion pills into the state. He has publicly criticized individuals involved in illegal abortions, labeling them as "abortion-loving radicals" and "fake doctors."

Abortion remains prohibited in Texas with limited exceptions, and providers can face criminal and civil penalties. Since the state's near-total abortion ban took effect in 2021, shortly after the Roe v. Wade decision was overturned, reports emerged of doctors denying or delaying abortion care, even in high-risk or emergency situations.