In December 1996, a 27-year-old woman in California walked into a clinic for a late-term abortion. She never made it back home.On the way to the hospital, bleeding internally, she died in her mother’s car.The autopsy later revealed the truth: her uterus had been perforated during the abortion. The doctor, Bruce Steir, had caused an injury so severe that it led to massive internal bleeding.And here’s where law steps in.The CaseThe State charged Dr. Steir not with murder, but with involuntary manslaughter. Why? Because the prosecution concluded that he hadn’t “intended” to kill the patient, but his gross negligence — lack of due caution in handling a known medical risk — caused her death.He eventually pleaded guilty. By then, he had already surrendered his medical license.This was not just another case of medical error. It was a criminal case born out of a medical procedure gone wrong.Law & Medicine CollideNormally, when doctors make mistakes, it’s a matter of medical negligence handled in civil courts or professional disciplinary boards. But when that negligence crosses a line — when it becomes reckless disregard for life — it can turn into a crime.That’s exactly what happened here.Civil liability = compensation, damages, loss.Criminal liability = punishment, prison, stigma.The difference? The degree of negligence. A simple mistake is not a crime. But when you act with gross negligence, knowing the risks, the law sees it as endangering life.Bigger QuestionsThis case raised firestorms in the U.S. for three reasons:Abortion is already politically charged. Every case gets pulled into the pro-choice vs. pro-life debate.Doctors feared criminalization. If every complication could lead to jail, would anyone perform high-risk procedures?Women’s safety. The very reason legal abortion exists is to prevent unsafe deaths. Yet here, a legal clinic still failed her.Lessons for IndiaIf such a case happened in India, it would likely fall under Section 304A of the Indian Penal Code (causing death by negligence), and professional action under the Medical Council of India guidelines. Courts here often draw a line between an “error of judgment” and “gross negligence.”But the bigger lesson is this: law alone cannot protect women if medical systems are weak. Regulations, emergency readiness, and accountability matter as much as the text of the statute.
