'Living in a nightmare,' Kentucky woman forced to leave state for abortion despite discovery of fatal defect

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Kentucky woman was faced with an impossible decision: give birth to a baby who wouldn't survive or have an abortion.

A near-total trigger law ban and a separate six-week ban were both passed by the state legislature. The trigger law was passed in 2019 and took effect when Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. It bans abortions except when they're carried out to save the life of the mother or to prevent disabling injury. It does not include exceptions for cases of rape or incest.

Newlyweds Heather and Nick Maberry, who live in a Stanton, Kentucky, home filled with six happy children and many pets, were excited to learn they were expecting another child last year, their first together.

A miscarriage devastated them, but, a few months later, the couple once again learned they were pregnant.

abortion access in kentucky — Heather and Nick Maberry spend time at their home with their children. *(WDRB Photo)*

"When we first heard her heartbeat, we just wanted to cry because we were just so excited that this was going to be a healthy baby," Heather Maberry said.

They picked the name Willow, but 21 weeks into the pregnancy, they were devastated once again.

"It was like we were living a nightmare," Heather Maberry said. "We still are."

Doctors told them Willow had anencephaly, a rare birth defect that prevents the brain and skull from forming properly in the womb.

"They explained that Willow was most likely not alive just because she had her heartbeat but no brain activity," Heather Maberry said.

Doctors gave the Maberrys two options: give birth to a baby that couldn't survive or get an abortion out of state.

"Do I continue to carry my child and suffer for the rest of these 18 weeks or do I do the hardest thing I've had to face in my life so that I can support my family?" Heather Maberry said.

She didn't want an abortion. She wanted to be induced early so she could deliver and hold her baby before Willow felt too much pain. But that would be considered illegal under Kentucky's abortion laws.

"In our situation, we should have been given the chance to give birth to our daughter," Heather Maberry said. "But Kentucky stole that from us."

At 23 weeks pregnant, feeling that it was her only option, the Maberrys traveled to Illinois to have the procedure.

"Every bit of me wanted to get up off that table and leave and keep her," Heather Maberry said. "We are grieving."

Kentucky state Sen. Cassie Chambers Armstrong, D-19, said her heart breaks for families like the Maberrys.

"There are real families, there are real people, there are real women who are suffering," said Chambers Armstrong, a lawyer, adding that Kentucky doctors are often hesitant to provide care in these circumstances because of legal consequences.

"I worry that we don't have the political willpower right now to do anything to stop these stories from happening time and time and time again."

Kentucky law only allows abortions to save the life of the mother. Some Republican legislators recognize the current law poses issues.

"It was interpreted correctly, unfortunately, and that's why the legislature needs to come back to the table and change the law," said Rep. Jason Nemes, a Republican who represents District 33.

Nemes has previously proposed a change to state law, which would allow a woman to get an abortion in Kentucky if two doctors say the baby wouldn't survive outside of the womb. But his amendments to bills have failed.

"I think it is heartbreaking," Nemes said. "I've talked to a number of my own constituents — some of whom are rock-ribbed Republicans and as pro-life as they come — and this has happened to them. I have one, in particular, who said, 'Look, we've tried to have a baby for years and we got pregnant and something happened.' And the baby wasn't going to be able to survive birth. This was coming after the law went into effect. They had to go to Illinois. I know what it meant for this family, because they were trying to get pregnant."

Heather Maberry has always considered herself pro-life until she had to make a choice she never expected.

"I've cried and said I hope that God forgives me and that I do get to go to Heaven," she said.

Nemes, who said he's pro-life, said he will try to get the law changed again in Kentucky's next legislative session, aiming to include exceptions for victims of rape and incest.

"I don't think Kentuckians want our law to say that a woman who is carrying a baby that is not going to survive birth has to leave the state in order to have a procedure," he said. "I don't think that's where our people are."

Last year, Kentucky voters rejected a ballot measure that would have denied any constitutional protections for abortion, handing a victory to abortion-rights supporters.

On Tuesday, abortion-rights groups filed a court motion to dismiss their lawsuit challenging Kentucky's near-total abortion ban. The current suit was filed by attorneys for the only two abortion clinics left in Kentucky when the state's ban on the procedure took effect.

Republican state Attorney General Daniel Cameron's office has defended the bans. Cameron said Tuesday that his office will steadfastly defend the state's anti-abortion laws.

"We are gratified that the abortion providers recognized their case should be dismissed," Cameron said in a statement. "As a result of our efforts, I am proud to say that the elective abortion industry is out of business in Kentucky."

Since the state's near-complete abortion ban took effect, abortion-rights groups said they have helped Kentuckians “get the care they need, including helping patients find care out of state.”

The groups opposing the ban, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky and Planned Parenthood, said Tuesday that the motion to dismiss the suit stemmed from the state Supreme Court's ruling “that took away health care providers' ability to defend the rights of their patients.”

Abortion-rights advocates said they'll team up with people who are pregnant and interested in challenging the abortion bans — in an effort to help restore access to the procedure in Kentucky.