A Polish court will rule on an appeal by three doctors convicted in the 2021 death of a pregnant woman, a case that ignited protests over restrictive abortion laws.
WARSAW: A Polish court will rule on Tuesday on an appeal by three doctors convicted over the 2021 death of a pregnant woman. The case of Izabela, who died of sepsis after an abortion was delayed, sparked nationwide protests and scrutiny of Poland’s restrictive abortion laws.
Her death occurred a year after a constitutional tribunal ruling tightened abortion access. Abortion in Poland is now legal only in cases of rape, incest, or a threat to the mother’s life or health.
Izabela was hospitalised in Pszczyna after her amniotic fluid broke at 22 weeks. Doctors delayed terminating the pregnancy despite known foetal defects.
She died of septic shock less than 24 hours later. Her family alleges doctors waited for the foetus to die, fearing legal consequences under the new restrictions.
A district medical court previously sentenced one doctor to 15 months in prison and a six-year practice ban. A second received a one-year suspended sentence and a four-year ban.
The third doctor, also charged with involuntary manslaughter, was sentenced to 18 months in prison and a six-year ban. Both the defence and prosecution appealed these verdicts.
The hospital was fined 650,000 Polish zloty (USD 179,000) after a review found numerous care irregularities. The patients’ rights ombudsman also found Izabela’s rights were violated.
This case was the first linked to the 2020 tribunal ruling that removed severe foetal abnormalities as legal grounds for abortion. That ruling triggered the largest protests in Poland since 1989.
Nationwide demonstrations under the slogan “Not One More” erupted again after Izabela’s death. The centrist ruling coalition elected in 2023 promised to reverse restrictive laws but has stalled due to internal disagreements.
Any parliamentary move to ease laws would likely face a veto from conservative President Karol Nawrocki. Poland has one of the EU’s most restrictive abortion regimes, with only 411 legal procedures recorded in the first half of 2025.
“Izabela was not the first or last woman in Poland to die for lack of a safe abortion,” said Mara Clarke of NGO Supporting Abortions for Everyone. “I hope these doctors are charged with negligence, as Izabela’s blood is on their hands.”
