Mom jailed for giving abortion pills to teen
Monday, 8 September 2014
A woman has been sentenced to prison for helping to end her teen daughter’s pregnancy by giving her pills purchased online. Jennifer Ann Whalen, 39, a resident of Washingtonville under Danville of Pennsylvania, USA, has been sentenced to nine to 18 months behind bars after pleading guilty to performing an illegal abortion. Whalen bought the pills from a European drug firm after the girl had gotten pregnant, but did not want to have the child. Whalen told authorities they couldn’t find a local clinic to perform an abortion, and the girl had no insurance to pay for a hospital stay. The girl took the pills and wound up hospitalised with extreme abdominal pain. Whalen’s attorney, Michael Banks, says his client understands ‘her decision was poor,’ according to The (Bloomsburg) Press Enterprise.