N.J. Supreme Court To Hear Appeal Of Ruling That Jury Can Consider Whether Physician Being Sued Gave Adequate Information About Abortion

The New Jersey Supreme Court recently agreed without comment to hear an appeal of a decision that a jury can consider whether a doctor gave adequate medical information to a woman who claims she was unable to give informed consent to undergo an abortion, the Newark Star-Ledger reports (Coscarelli, Newark Star-Ledger, 7/13). According to court papers, physician Sheldon Turkish in 1996 told Rosa Acuna, who was eight weeks pregnant, that she had to undergo an "immediate abortion" because her pregnancy was causing damage to her kidneys. Acuna charges that Turkish "incorrectly told [her] ... that she was not aborting a human life" when she underwent the procedure, adding that she has experienced psychological trauma, including depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and psychosexual dysfunction, as a result of the abortion. A trial judge previously had dismissed the case, stating that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a "fetus is not a person," but an appellate court ruled that Acuna could sue for damages involving "a question of medical malpractice." A three-judge panel of the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court in April dismissed the wrongful death claim in the lawsuit but wrote that a jury could decide "[w]hat medical information is material and must be disclosed by an obstetrician when advising a patient to terminate a pregnancy and what medical information is material when the patient asks if the 'baby' is already there." Appellate Court Judge Ariel Rodriques, writing for the three-judge panel, added, "Obviously, the term 'baby' meant something different to Acuna and Turkish. For her, it meant an embryo or fetus; for the doctor, a human being following birth. Arguably, from Turkish's perspective, he answered correctly and discharged his duty to his patient by indicating there was no 'baby' there." Acuna is suing Turkish and the Obstetrical and Gynecological Group of Perth Amboy and Edison (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 4/11). Turkish's attorney John Zen Jackson, who filed the appeal with the state Supreme Court, did not return calls for comment, according to the Star-Ledger. It is unclear when arguments for the appeal will be heard, the Star-Ledger reports (Newark Star-Ledger, 7/13).

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