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Kentucky Woman Charged With First-Degree Fetal Homicide After At-Home Abortion, Police Say

Investigators await autopsy results to establish gestational age under Kentucky’s near-total abortion ban.

Overview

  • Kentucky State Police say clinic staff in Campton reported a patient on Dec. 31 who disclosed terminating a pregnancy at her residence.
  • Investigators identified the patient as 35-year-old Melinda S. Spencer, who allegedly said she ordered abortion medication online and buried the remains on her property.
  • Troopers located what KSP described as a developed male infant in a shallow grave near the 3700 block of Flat Mary Road, consistent with Spencer’s statement.
  • Spencer was arrested on counts of first-degree fetal homicide, abuse of a corpse, and tampering with physical evidence, and she is being held at Three Forks Regional Jail.
  • Authorities have not released gestational age, with outlets reporting an autopsy will determine it, and the investigation remains active under state laws that largely prohibit abortion and can treat first-degree fetal homicide as a capital offense.