Indiana is putting women on trial for their reproductive choice. On April 1, 2015, Ms. Purvi Patel was sentenced to 41 years for the contradictory charges of feticide and child neglect. As the first state in the nation to achieve the charging, conviction, and sentencing of a woman for a miscarriage, Indiana is sending the message to all women that they do not have the right to reproductive autonomy and thereby is preventing them from seeking the medical help they need.

In July of 2013, Purvi, a 33-year-old woman went to St. Joseph Regional Medical Center, seeking medical attention for heavy vaginal bleeding after she suffered a miscarriage at home.  As the primary caretaker for her family, Purvi helped her father run their family business and cared for her parents and grandparents.  She was arrested after she went to the hospital for vaginal bleeding and convicted even though, there is no physical evidence for both charges. Rather, the prosecution used text messages she sent to her friend and put Purvi’s feeling about the pregnancy on trial, and used a discredited and scientifically invalid ‘float test’ to carry out the conviction and sentencing.   

Purvi, a vulnerable, Indian-American woman in Indiana, has been targeted to send the message that if women do not successfully carry out a pregnancy, they will be investigated and tried in court. 

This is a travesty of justice. We are shocked that women’s rights to bodily integrity and reproduction, two basic human rights, have been so grossly desecrated. The judgment of the Indiana Court indicates a total disrespect for and a deliberate attempt to erode women’s right to choose. The Indiana laws restricting women’s right to control their own reproductive functions are in violation of the Supreme Court’s judgment in Roe v. Wade in spirit. We condemn the Indiana Courts and Administration for this contemptuous disregard of women's human rights and demand that the unjust conviction of Ms. Patel be overturned and laws restricting women’s reproductive rights be repealed.

Please sign this petition to demand the immediate release of Purvi Patel. Let Indiana know that the world is watching as Ms. Patel makes an appeal for her case.  We also call on the citizens of Indiana and its lawmakers to protect women’s right to reproductive choice and safe access to medical care so that all women can make healthy reproductive decisions. #StandWithPurvi