A midwife in Texas has been arrested and charged with performing illegal abortions and practicing medicine without the appropriate license.
Ken Paxton, the state attorney general, announced the arrest, which he said Monday happened earlier this month, after an investigation by his office.
According to Paxton, the midwife, Maria Margarita Rojas, 49, is alleged to have owned and operated three health clinics in the northwest area of Houston. In a news release, Paxton accused Rojas of performing abortions in the clinics — which are banned by law in Texas — and of employing people who falsely presented themselves as licensed medical professionals.
The case appears to be the first in which a health care provider in Texas has been criminally charged with performing an abortion since the state’s ban went into effect in 2022.
The abortion charge is considered a second-degree felony, with a sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. The charge related to medical licensing is a third-degree felony.
The clinics did not comment when they were reached by phone, and Rojas did not immediately respond to inquiries. Court documents did not list a lawyer for her.
The documents show that a district judge in Waller County first granted a warrant for Rojas’ arrest on March 5, alleging criminal conspiracy to commit practicing medicine. She was booked at the Waller County Jail the following day, according to the documents, and charged March 7 with violating the Texas Occupations Code. She was later released on a $10,000 bond.
On Monday, Rojas was arrested again, this time on charges of performing an abortion and violating the state’s occupation code, the documents show. Those are alleged to have happened after Rojas’ first arrest, according to the documents.
Waller County District Attorney Sean Whittmore referred the case to the attorney general’s office, the release said. Whittmore’s office told NBC News that it anticipates that the attorney general will handle the prosecution.
The Texas law that made it illegal to provide an abortion took effect shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The policy permits exceptions if a physician determines that terminating a pregnancy could save a pregnant person’s life or prevent substantial impairment of a major bodily function.
Paxton has pledged to enforce the ban, which targets providers, not patients.
“In Texas, life is sacred. I will always do everything in my power to protect the unborn, defend our state’s pro-life laws, and work to ensure that unlicensed individuals endangering the lives of women by performing illegal abortions are fully prosecuted,” he said in a statement Monday. “Texas law protecting life is clear, and we will hold those who violate it accountable.”
In December, Paxton sued a New York doctor, alleging she had prescribed abortion pills to a patient in Dallas. A Louisiana grand jury indicted the same doctor in January, saying she prescribed abortion pills — the first known instance of criminal charges’ being filed against a provider for sending the pills across state lines. That doctor did not respond to requests for comment at the time and has not spoken about the case.
New York has a so-called shield law that protects abortion providers in the state who prescribe pills to places where abortion is banned.
