A pregnant woman who was pepper sprayed during a recent Occupy Seattle protest claims the police also kicked her in the stomach - and caused her miscarriage five days later.
19-year-old Jennifer Fox gives her account to The Stranger.
“’I was standing in the middle of the crowd when the police started moving in,’ she says. ‘I was screaming, 'I am pregnant, I am pregnant. Let me through. I am trying to get out.’ At that point...a Seattle police officer lifted his foot and it hit her in the stomach, and another officer pushed his bicycle into the crowd, again hitting Fox in the stomach.”
You may have seen Fox before - she was the one being carried to an ambulance
in this widely circulated photo.
Fox was taken to Harborview Medical Center where she says she was given an ultrasound that did not indicate any problems. Five days later - she returned to the center and the medical staff diagnosed a miscarriage.
(YouTube)
Fox was unable to provide medical records to confirm her story but says she is seeking them from her caseworker. And without more information -
a writer for Gawker says it’s hasty to conclude that police caused her miscarriage.
“The Mayo Clinic lists several common reasons why women miscarry, from hormonal problems to infections. However, it is possible that a cause/effect relationship exists. People have been indicted for homicide for kicking pregnant women in the stomach.”
But with new videos of protesters being pepper sprayed or abused popping up daily,
a Forbes writer questions why the peaceful protests have become so violent.
“I have nothing against a cop doing his or her job. But when that job exceeds what is humane or likely legal, how can you respond with anything short of condemnation? If the actions of police did lead to this girl’s miscarriage, that’s a real problem.”
Fox is currently deciding whether or not to seek legal action against the Seattle Police Department, which has yet to comment about the incident.
