Woman jailed for abortion
Published on: Friday, December 22, 2023
By: Crystal E Hermenegildus
The woman consumed one of the pills and inserted the other two in her private parts before she had a severe stomach ache and went to hospital the next day, accompanied by her fiancé. - Pic for illustration only
Kota Kinabalu: A 22-year-old woman was jailed a day and fined RM2,000 by the Magistrate’s Court here, Thursday, for terminating her pregnancy.
The unemployed woman pleaded guilty before Magistrate Wan Farrah Farriza Wan Ghazali to intentionally consuming medicine to abort her pregnancy to prevent a child from being born alive, or to cause it to die after its birth, at 9.30pm on July 4, this year in a rented room at Sadong Jaya, here.
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She was charged under Section 315 of the Penal Code, which carries a jail term of up to 10 years or fine, or both, on conviction.
Previously, the court deferred sentencing to Dec 21 pending the woman’s social report being prepared, as she was 21 years old when the offence was committed.
Deputy Public Persecution (DPP) Ling Guong Zhin, in tendering the facts of the case, informed the court that a doctor at the Women and Children Hospital in Likas lodged a report on receiving a female patient, who was 25 weeks pregnant, and later gave birth in the maternity ward.
Guong Zhin said initial investigations revealed the woman came to the hospital complaining of abdominal pain and that during the treatment it was found that she was 25 weeks pregnant.
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Soon after, the woman gave birth to a premature baby boy weighing 800gm, who died an hour later, because his heart was not functioning properly, he said.
Further investigations revealed the woman had sex with her fiancé several months before coming to the city to work and that she was unaware of her pregnancy at the end of June.
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The court heard that on July 4, the woman bought three pills to abort her pregnancy, as she felt worried and embarrassed if her family found out.
The woman consumed one of the pills and inserted the other two in her private parts before she had a severe stomach ache and went to hospital the next day, accompanied by her fiancé.
A lawyer representing the woman applied for a lenient fine, saying she had informed him that she got married afterward to her fiancé and is now working full-time, helping her mother sell by the roadside stall.
He said the woman had shown remorse and attended counselling sessions arranged by the hospital.
However, the prosecution proposed an adequate sentence, emphasising the need for a punishment that would serve as a lesson and raise awareness among the public.
In another case, a 36-year-old was fined RM2,500 or nine months’ jail for having syabu.
Edgar James pleaded guilty to having 0.23gm of syabu at the back street of Sutera Avenue, at 7.05pm on Oct 23.
The prosecution informed the court that on the said day, police on patrol observed Edgar in a Proton Wira vehicle.
Edgar handed over a transparent bag containing syabu to the police before being arrested, said DPP Guong Zhin.
Duty counsel Lim Ming Zoong, defending Edgar, requested for a lenient sentence.
DPP Guong Zhin applied for a deterrent sentence.
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