Inmate Abortion Q & A

Randall Marshal

Who is the inmate? While it shouldn't be hard to discover the name of the inmate, there are enough crazy people out there that we have no desire to make the woman's name public.

Why did she file suit via the ACLU? Our guess would be her attorney in the drug case is court appointed and did not want to take on a case that would take him/her to federal court in Huntsville without substantial financial rewards.

Who is the ACLU attorney? He has been named as Randall Marshall and is paid by the ACLU. In all probability, the inmate is not paying the ACLU lawyer anything.

Why did she even contact the ACLU? Our educated guess is she felt going through the county/state courts in Lauderdale could take such a length of time it would be too late to secure an abortion.

Who would have paid for the procedure? Sources have said the inmate would have paid. She would also have had to pay off-duty deputies to escort her to and from the Huntsville Clinic.

Is Lauderdale out any money on this? Oh, yeah... The county has had to pay at least for travel to the Huntsville courtroom and probably has also had to pay some extra legal fees to the county attorney, but the latter is not a given.

Why did the inmate's local attorney contact her about the district attorney's petition to bar the inmate from custody of the unborn child? Our guess is that the inmate called him/her when she became aware of Mr. Connolly's intentions.

Did the local attorney behave unethically? That may be something the Alabama bar will have to decide if Marshall files a complaint. It's difficult to see how the attorney could have behaved any differently under the circumstances, assuming the inmate asked to speak to him/her.

What will happen to the child? That will depend on the father, if known, and other relatives who might file for custody. It's rare that a judge severs all biological ties with the child, but if that does happen, the infant will be put up for adoption. In many cases, this is the best option for the child.

What will happen to the inmate? Since she is not charged with trafficking or some other crime where certain sentencing is mandatory, and depending on her previous record, she will probably receive probation. Let's hope she makes the most of it.



Shoalanda