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The family of a San Antonio woman has filed suit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, state medical officials, UT Health San Antonio and multiple doctors, alleging that Texas’ abortion ban contributed to her death.
According to the suit, 37-year-old Tierra Walker experienced seizures, blood clots and dangerously high blood pressure as her health deteriorated during pregnancy.
Attorneys for the family said during Wednesday’s news conference that more than 90 doctors were involved in Walker’s care.
The suit, filed in state district court in San Antonio, names a number of state and local officials, health care institutions and doctors as defendants. They include Paxton, Texas Medical Board Executive Director Stephen Brint Carlton, UT Health San Antonio, multiple Bexar County entities and officials, and several doctors.
Her family alleges that Walker repeatedly sought an abortion as her health deteriorated but did not receive one. Walker was 20 weeks pregnant when she died in December 2024 from preeclampsia and hypertensive cardiovascular disease. Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-related condition marked by high blood pressure that can become life-threatening.
Texas’ abortion ban took effect in August 2022 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The law includes an exception when a pregnancy poses a risk of death or substantial impairment of a major bodily function. The family alleges the state’s restrictions deterred doctors from providing the procedure.
TPR did not immediately receive a response to a request for comment from Paxton’s office. UT Health San Antonio said it did not have any information to offer at this time.
In a statement to CBS News, the Texas Medical Board said physicians are “not required to wait until a mother’s life is in immediate danger” before providing necessary medical care. The board said that care may include ending a pregnancy in some circumstances.
The family is being represented by Amplify Legal, the litigation arm of Abortion in America, and the Marynell Maloney Law Firm.
Molly Duane is one of the attorneys for the family.
“The basic principle here is that you cannot take away someone’s life as a state and not be held liable for doing so,” she said during a Wednesday news conference on Zoom.
The suit also alleges that Texas’ abortion ban is unconstitutional.
The lead plaintiff, LaTanya Walker, is Tierra’s aunt and is acting on behalf of Tierra’s teenage son, her husband and mother. She also spoke to reporters during the news conference.
“Her life mattered. It mattered. And I wouldn’t want this to happen to anyone else.”
