The worst day of Rachel Fulton’s life started with devastating news. Her dearly wanted pregnancy needed to end. The baby, whom she and her husband had already named — Titus Claude — would not survive. And her own life was in danger. Then her day got even worse.
Fulton lives in Tennessee, where abortion is banned except for very narrow threats to the patient’s life. Her doctor could not help her. She had to travel hours to another state, to an unfamiliar doctor, far from home and the support system she desperately needed.
Now, she is fighting back. And she is not alone.
The Lawsuit
Fulton joined a lawsuit, along with five other patients, in 2023 against the state of Tennessee for violating their right to life. The American Medical Association and two doctors also joined the lawsuit because they say they have been prevented from providing the standard of care for their patients.
The trial was set to begin on Monday. But a last-minute appeal halted the proceedings indefinitely.
“An overwhelming majority of Americans want women to be able to get abortion care when their lives or health are threatened, and there are these exceptions written into the law that the politicians tout as doing that, but in fact, they don’t,” said Goldstein, an attorney with the Center for Reproductive Rights.
A Wanted Pregnancy, A Devastating Diagnosis
When the Fultons learned they were expecting their second child, they were overjoyed. But a 12-week scan revealed a condition called cystic hygroma, in which fluid gathered where the heart should have been forming. They held out hope. They began decorating the nursery with a Peanuts theme. They chose a name: Titus Claude.
A follow-up exam at 16 weeks revealed that the condition was worsening. The baby would not survive long after birth. Fulton’s life was also in danger because she could develop mirror syndrome, a potentially deadly complication.
“Nothing prepares you to hear that the baby that you want is incompatible with life,” Fulton said. “And not only is he incompatible with life, but he is putting my life at risk. There’s nothing in the world that can prepare you for that, even if you know it might be coming.”
Her mother reminded her that she had a little boy at home — a three-year-old son — who needed her. Fulton thought about her paternal grandmother, who died in childbirth and left seven children behind. “I have seen what my aunts and uncles have gone through as a result of losing their mom when they were really young, and how it still affects them,” she said. “I didn’t want to do that to my son.”
No Good Options
The maternal-fetal physician gave Fulton three options. She could go out of state to get an abortion. She could wait until she was in mortal danger. Or she could wait until Titus died — only then could she access the care she needed in Tennessee.
“It made a terrible situation so much worse,” Fulton said. “I had no good options. I at least wanted the least-bad option to be with a doctor who has already seen me and is familiar with my medical history and I can go back to see for a follow-up appointment.”
She also wanted to be able to recover at home, near friends and family. Instead, she was left feeling a callous disregard for her life. “Some people who are making some decisions just didn’t care whether I lived or died in this situation.”
The Fultons drove about eight hours to St. Louis, Missouri, to stay with family. Then Rachel and her husband drove another two or three hours to Illinois for the abortion. “I was just so, so grateful that I could give my son a huge, huge hug after all of that,” she said.
Fighting for Titus
When she learned about the lawsuit from the Center for Reproductive Rights, she contacted them for updates on the case — and ended up joining as a plaintiff.
“If I could stop people from being in the medical position that I was in, I would, but I can’t,” Fulton said. “Whenever I do anything with this case, as hard as it is, I am doing it to help other people and I’m doing it for Titus. For me, this is the Titus Fulton memorial court case.”
The patient plaintiffs were all injured by being denied medical care, Goldstein said. Four of them were diagnosed with lethal fetal diagnoses, which were dangerous to their own health. Two of them developed very serious infections because reproductive healthcare was denied.
“What the state is trying to do by this delay is prevent these women from telling their story in court,” Goldstein said. “The state wants to convince the people of Tennessee that the abortion ban is working and that women who need medically necessary abortion care are getting it. And what women in our case prove, and what the state is very afraid of coming to light, is that it’s not working. Women are being denied care, they’re getting infected, they’re going septic, and this is all because doctors are terrified to provide standard medical treatment that they used to provide to their patients before the ban went into effect.”
The State’s Response
The attorney general of Tennessee, Jonathan Skrmetti, told the Guardian in a statement that “there’s nothing unusual about appealing an appealable order,” adding that he believes “the Tennessee judiciary can resolve the legal issues here without a trial. If we’re wrong about that, we’re fully prepared to try this case.”
The plaintiffs plan to fight the appeal.
“It’s been a long time waiting for this, to have the rug pulled out from under us now,” Fulton said. “I’m just hoping I still get my day in court, I get to tell my story, I get to speak for other women, other families, in situations like ours.”
The longer the trial is delayed, she said, the more families have to go through pain like theirs.
The Bottom Line
Rachel Fulton, a Tennessee mother, needed an abortion to save her life after her wanted pregnancy was diagnosed with a fatal condition. Because of Tennessee’s abortion ban, she was forced to travel out of state for care, away from her doctor, her family, and her support system. She joined a lawsuit against the state in 2023 along with five other patients, the American Medical Association, and two doctors.
The trial was set to begin Monday but was halted by a last-minute appeal. The plaintiffs say the state is trying to prevent them from telling their stories. The state says it is following normal legal procedures.
Fulton says she is fighting for Titus — her son who never got to come home. “For me, this is the Titus Fulton memorial court case.” The trial is delayed. But the fight is not over yet.
