Source: Tom Williams / Getty
INDIANAPOLIS — An attorney representing Dr. Caitlin Bernard, the Indianapolis doctor who performed an abortion for a 10-year-old rape victim from Ohio, has filed a tort claim notice against Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita.
Bernard’s lawyer, Kathleen DeLaney of DeLaney & DeLaney LLC, confirmed to WRTV Tuesday the notice had been filed.
It’s the first step toward a possible defamation lawsuit against Rokita.
It comes after Bernard’s lawyer filed a ‘cease and desist’ letter against Rokita after told Fox News he would investigate whether she failed to follow proper reporting procedures.
Records showed Bernard properly filed the termination of pregnancy report after she performed the abortion.
The girl traveled from Ohio to Indiana for an abortion after Ohio implemented the “Heartbeat bill,” which does not allow abortions in the state after six weeks of pregnancy. In Ohio, a 10-year-old who becomes pregnant is, by definition, a rape victim, but the state’s abortion law does not make exceptions for rape and incest.
The termination of pregnancy report, provided to WRTV by DeLaney, states the abortion was performed on June 30. It also shows the abortion was reported to the Indiana Department of Child Services and received by the Indiana Department of Health on July 2.
Read more from WRTV here
