AUSTIN, Texas — Nearly two years after Tierra Walker died of complications from her pregnancy, her relatives have filed a lawsuit against the Texas attorney general, medical regulators and doctors, alleging she was not offered a life-saving abortion.
Walker’s aunt, Latanya Walker, said she was by her niece’s side throughout the pregnancy. She believes failures by medical providers and state leaders contributed to her death.
“Tierra was not only a niece to me, but she was a daughter, too,” she said. Describing what she said she saw during Walker’s medical care, she added that doctors were “around,” but “nobody went to help.”
Walker joined attorneys this week as they filed a lawsuit alleging wrongful death and civil rights violations. The suit names Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Texas Medical Board and Walker’s doctors among those the family holds responsible.
“Tierra and her family repeatedly asked for an abortion. Yet, none of her medical providers came forward to say what everyone knew to be true: that this pregnancy was going to kill her,” said attorney Molly Duane, speaking on behalf of the family.
The lawsuit alleges the attorney general’s office’s enforcement of the state’s abortion ban created a climate of fear among doctors, despite Texas law allowing an exception for medical emergencies.
“Tierra had a constitutionally protected right to her own life that was taken away from her,” she said.
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Amy O’Donnell, executive director of Texas Alliance for Life, a pro-life advocacy group, believes the law in Texas is clear.
“I want to say that our heart goes out to the family that is grieving the loss of Tiara,” O’Donnell said. “And our laws have been written in such a way that they clearly explain that doctors are able to intervene to save the life of the mother in cases such as hers before the threat to her life becomes imminent.”
In 2025, Texas lawmakers passed a law to clarify the state’s abortion laws. The “Life of a Mother Act” ensures that healthcare providers can provide abortion care to women at risk of death or serious injury.
LaTanya Walker described the pregnancy as marked by seizures, high blood pressure, and pain. Walker died in December 2024, days after her final emergency-room visit.
Her family said it is seeking accountability and wants to prevent another death.
“I want it to not happen to anybody else. It needs to stop,” Walker said.
The attorney general’s office did not respond to a request for comment. UT Health San Antonio and the Texas Medical Board declined to comment on the lawsuit.
In a statement to CBS Austin, University Health, one of the defendants in the case, said it could not share patient information specific to the case but added:
In general, our clinicians make patient care decisions based on each patient’s clinical condition, applicable medical standards and legal requirements. We take concerns about patient care seriously and review them through appropriate internal clinical and quality processes.Our priority is to provide medically appropriate and timely care, while safeguarding patient privacy and complying with all applicable laws and regulations.