Well,
this
is
an
awful
story
from
Texas
about
a
woman’s
right
to
make
her
own
decisions
about
her
reproductive
health,
but
it’s
probably
not
the
terrible
tale
you’re
envisioning.
Texas
lawyer
Mason
Herring,
a
personal
injury
attorney
and
graduate
of
South
Texas
College
of
Law,
was
charged
with
assaulting
a
pregnant
woman.
He’s
accused
of
dosing
his
wife’s
drinks
with
an
abortion
drug
—
according
to
an
affidavit
in
the
case,
he
said
her
pregnancy
“would
ruin
his
plans
and
make
him
look
like
a
jerk.”
The
couple
was
separated
when
they
learned
of
her
pregnancy,
they
already
had
two
other
children
together,
but
reconciled
and
planned
to
spend
their
children’s
spring
break
together.
On
March
17th,
Herring
fixed
his
wife
breakfast
with
a
cup
of
water.
According
to
court
documents,
after
she
drank
the
water
she
noticed
it
was
cloudy,
something
Herring
chalked
up
to
dirty
pipes
and/or
a
glass.
Later
that
day,
his
wife
experienced
severe
bleeding
and
she
went
to
the
emergency
room.
She
was
released
from
the
hospital
later
that
night.
Over
the
next
week,
Herring
allegedly
tried
to
give
her
four
beverages
but
she
says
she
noticed
a
foreign
substance
or
broken
seal
on
them
and
did
not
have
the
drinks.
But
as
reported
by
the
Washington
Post,
about
a
month
later,
Herring
resumed
plying
her
with
suspicious
beverages:
About
a
month
later,
on
April
20,
Herring’s
wife
invited
two
people
to
her
house
as
“witnesses”
to
her
husband’s
anticipated
visit,
the
affidavit
states.
Herring
arrived
that
morning
to
take
their
children
to
school,
and
even
though
she
had
two
beverages
in
front
of
her,
he
allegedly
tried
to
give
her
another.
The
wife
told
police
she
and
her
two
confidantes
all
saw
“an
unknown
substance”
floating
inside.The
next
day,
Herring
brought
another
drink,
this
time
one
from
a
Sonic
fast-food
restaurant,
according
to
the
affidavit.
Again,
his
wife
told
investigators,
she
noticed
an
unknown
substance.
Again,
she
didn’t
drink
it.On
April
24,
the
wife
watched
surveillance
camera
footage,
noticing
that
Herring
had
cleaned
out
his
truck
and
taken
the
trash
to
the
curb,
something
she
described
as
out
of
character,
the
affidavit
states.
After
he
left,
she
inspected
the
trash
and
discovered
open
packs
of
“Cyrux,”
police
said.
She
learned
it
was
a
Mexican
version
of
the
American-made
Cytotec,
whose
main
ingredient
is
misoprostol,
which
she
knew
could
be
used
to
induce
abortions,
according
to
the
affidavit.On
April
26,
Herring
allegedly
returned.
While
there,
his
wife
saw
him
making
a
beverage
in
the
kitchen,
the
affidavit
states.
She
watched
as
he
pulled
a
plastic
baggie
out
of
his
pocket,
emptied
its
contents
into
a
liquid
and
eventually
served
the
drink
in
her
bedroom,
according
to
the
affidavit.
The
wife
reported
the
incidents
to
police,
and
provided
photos
of
the
suspicious
drinks
as
well
as
samples
of
the
beverages.
According
to
prosecutors,
at
least
two
of
the
provided
drinks
tested
positive
for
misoprostol.
Herring’s
lawyers
said
they’re
“very
much
look
forward
to
our
day
in
court
and
are
thoroughly
convinced
that
we
will
prevail
in
a
Court
of
law
when
our
time
comes
to
defend
these
allegations.”
Herring’s
wife
gave
birth
to
a
slightly
premature
baby
who
is
now
reportedly
doing
well.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
(@Kathryn1).