A young couple in North Carolina are facing several charges after they allegedly ordered abortion pills from out of state, and the 18-year-old mother gave birth on the toilet at 31 weeks of pregnancy.
The mother, Syeisha Johnson, is facing charges for assault inflicting serious bodily injury on an unborn child and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. The father, 19-year-old Elijah Speight, is facing a charge for negligent child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury, Fox 8 reported.
Investigators said Johnson took the abortion drugs mifepristone and misoprostol with the intent to terminate her pregnancy. Instead, she gave birth on the toilet at 31 weeks to a baby weighing under five-and-a-half pounds, according to the report.
“Speight explained to officers on scene that he was the father of the child,” a search warrant said. “He stated in June of 2026, he and Ms. Johnson were informed by their doctor that she was 20 weeks pregnant.”
The baby still had a pulse when first responders first arrived on scene, the outlet reported, citing the search warrant. The baby was given CPR and transported to Duke Medical Center for treatment.
The search warrants reportedly alleged that Johnson ordered abortion pills from Virginia. On July 29th, she gave birth on the toilet and allegedly left the child in the toilet for several minutes, investigators said.
The young couple appeared in Durham County court on Wednesday and have since posted $1,000 bond each.
“These two young people are not a danger to our community,” Durham County District Attorney Satana Deberry said. “They are very young and … it’s important that they be with their families and be able to defend themselves appropriately. My goal always is to get to the truth and to justice and once we review the evidence, we’ll know where we’re going to go from here.”
Assistant Public Defender Barbara Lagemann said Johnson called 911 herself when she gave birth and noted neither of the parents had any previous criminal history.
North Carolina allows abortions through the first 12 weeks of pregnancy with some exceptions.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) only recommends abortion drugs to be taken through ten weeks of pregnancy. However, a Biden-era rule allowing abortion pills to be sent through the mail has significantly decreased medical and in-person oversight.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.
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