Bid to halt trial of mum who got abortion for daughter, 15

Lawyers claim prosecution inhuman

A LANDMARK legal bid to stop the prosecution of a mother for allegedly procuring her 15-year-old daughter’s abortion will be heard in the autumn.

In the High Court yesterday, Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan confirmed two days in October will be set aside for all submissions in the case. Lawyers for the pair claim it is inhuman to subject the woman to a criminal trial in Belfast. They also contend the Public Prosecution Service decision breaches privacy rights in a case involving an unwanted pregnancy from an allegedly abusive relationship. Their legal representatives are seeking to judicially review the PPS for pursuing a prosecution against the woman over procuring the abortion back in 2013. Terminations are currently only legal in Northern Ireland if the pregnant female’s life or long-term health is at serious risk. Lawyers want the court to find it was wrong to prosecute and potentially criminalise the mother for behaviour that would be lawful in other parts of the UK. Earlier this year they cleared the first stage in their challenge by establishing they had an arguable case. Judges were told the woman was faced with a situation where she believed her teenage daughter could not cope with the pregnancy. It was claimed conception followed underage sex and amounted to a form of “statutory rape”. With only the mother facing trial over the alleged procurement, a barrister representing the family insisted the daughter’s “voice” will not be heard in those proceedings. Reporting restrictions have been imposed to protect their identities.