Family of Texas woman who died after being denied abortion sues Ken Paxton

The family of Tierra Walker, a 37-year-old San Antonio woman who died of preeclampsia in December 2024, has filed a landmark wrongful death lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, state medical officials, and treating doctors. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Walker's family by Amplify Legal, alleges that Walker was repeatedly denied a life-saving abortion during her high-risk pregnancy. The plaintiffs argue that Texas's strict abortion bans are unconstitutional and create a climate of fear that prevents doctors from utilizing medical emergency exceptions.

Tierra Walker's preeclampsia death

• ▪Tierra Walker's 15-year-old son discovered her dead in their home on his birthday, two days after she was discharged from her final hospital visit.
• ▪Tierra Walker had a history of chronic health conditions, including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, obesity, severe asthma, and a seizure disorder, and had previously lost unborn twins in a difficult 2021 pregnancy.
• ▪Tierra Walker, a 37-year-old Black woman from San Antonio, died on December 30, 2024, while 20 weeks pregnant, from hypertensive cardiovascular disease and preeclampsia.

Texas abortion ban enforcement

• ▪Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has actively enforced the state's abortion ban, including threatening legal action against providers, seeking to dismiss challenges by patients denied emergency abortions, and arresting individuals linked to illegal abortion services.
• ▪The Texas Medical Board issued guidance in June 2024 stating that doctors do not need to wait until a patient's life is in immediate danger to provide an abortion, but the board declined to list specific qualifying medical conditions.
• ▪Texas laws enacted in 2021 and 2022 prohibit performing or inducing an abortion except when the pregnant patient's life or health is at risk, with violators facing felony charges, prison time, medical license revocation, and fines up to $100,000.

Denied abortion requests

• ▪During her four-month pregnancy in 2024, Tierra Walker and her family repeatedly requested an abortion to save her life, but medical staff denied the requests, stating that her baby was fine.
• ▪Tierra Walker was too sick to travel outside of Texas to obtain an abortion due to severe complications, including seizures and frequent hospitalizations.
• ▪Medical records from Tierra Walker's final hospital visits noted she was at a high risk of death and that delivering the baby was the best treatment for her preeclampsia, yet she was discharged without the procedure.

Medical staff dismissal

• ▪Medical staff repeatedly dismissed Tierra Walker's severe symptoms, such as seizures, blood clots, nausea, and pain, as unrelated to her pregnancy, with some providers suggesting her symptoms were psychological.
• ▪A ProPublica report identified up to 90 medical professionals involved in Tierra Walker's care, none of whom offered her the option of an abortion.

Lawsuit against Ken Paxton

• ▪The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and a jury trial, alleging that the defendants' deliberate indifference and medical mistreatment caused Tierra Walker's preventable death.
• ▪The lawsuit names Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Texas Medical Board Executive Director Stephen Brint Carlton, University Health, UT Health Science Center San Antonio, Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales, and three individual doctors as defendants.
• ▪LaTanya Walker, acting on behalf of Tierra Walker's husband, mother, and teenage son, filed a wrongful death lawsuit on September 15, 2026, in state court in San Antonio.

Constitutional challenges to restrictions

• ▪The lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of Texas's near-total abortion bans under both the United States Constitution and the Texas Constitution, alleging they violate the right to life.
• ▪The lawsuit alleges that Texas's strict abortion laws and severe penalties create an atmosphere of fear that intimidates doctors into inaction, rendering the statutory medical emergency exceptions ineffective.

Debatable claims

• ▪Texas's near-total abortion ban is unconstitutional
• ▪Ken Paxton should be held liable for Tierra Walker's death
• ▪The Texas Medical Board should specify which conditions qualify for abortion exceptions