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VP Debate: Georgia's Amber Thurman's death was brought up during abortion debate

Death of a Georgia woman in the vice presidential debate

Stockbridge resident Amber Thurman died while attempting to have an abortion. Recently enacted Georgia state law banned this procedure after about six weeks.

STOCKBRIDGE, Ga. – As the race for the White House enters its final stages, vice presidential candidates Gov. Tim Walz and Sen. JD Vance made their pitches to voters on the debate stage.

Georgia, a crucial swing state for both candidates, took center stage Tuesday night as the candidates debated the future of abortion in the United States.

Walz repeatedly criticized Vance over abortion access and reproductive rights as the Ohio senator tried to argue that a federal matrix of abortion laws was the ideal approach for the United States. Walz responded that a “fundamental right” for a woman should not be determined “according to geography.”

“This is a very simple suggestion: these are women’s decisions,” said Walz. “We trust women. We trust doctors.”

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The Minnesota governor sharpened his argument by bringing up the death of Stockbridge resident Amber Thurman, who died while attempting to have an abortion. Georgia's most recent law banned the procedure after about six weeks.

“How can we as a nation say that your life and your rights — as fundamental as the right to control your own body — should be determined by geography,” Walz said.

MORE: Georgia Republicans rally to defend 'heartbeat law' after court blocks abortion ban

Rather than sidestep the reference, Vance once agreed with Walz that “Amber Thurman should still be alive,” but argued that the government should let voters decide on abortion restrictions.

Vance turned the conversation to the GOP ticket's proposals, which he said would help women and children economically and thus avoid the need for abortions. But Walz countered that such policies — tax credits, expanded child care subsidies, a more equal economy — could be pursued while still allowing women to make their own decisions about abortion.

Who was Amber Thurman?

ProPublica reports that Thurman visited Piedmont Henry Hospital in August 2022 after suffering a rare complication from an abortion pill.

The report shows that what should have been a routine procedure was delayed due to concerns that it violated the Living Infants Fairness and Equality (LIFE) Act of 2019, also known colloquially as the Georgia Heartbeat Bill.

In Thurman's case ProPublica reports that a procedure was not performed until 20 hours after she was admitted, which was too late at the time. Thurman had developed a serious infection and was already suffering from organ failure.

ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative journalism organization based in New York City, also reported on a second Georgia woman, Candi Miller, who died after the state's abortion ban went into effect.

Vice President Kamala Harris told Thurman's story on the campaign trail, calling Thurman's death a “consequence of Donald Trump's actions.”

In September, Thurman's mother told her daughter's story during a Harris campaign town hall in Michigan.

“Amber wasn’t a statistic. She was loved by a family – a strong family,” said Shanette Williams.

After the debate, the Thurman family released a statement praising Walz for telling the 28-year-old mother's story on television.

“The fight for justice for Amber is a fight for every woman's right to make decisions about her own body and to access the medical care she needs,” the statement reads in part. “We will not stop until these dangerous laws are repealed and no more lives are lost. Until then, we must continue to say her name: Amber Thurman!”

Georgia's abortion laws in limbo

Impact of the Georgia abortion ruling on the presidential election

A landmark abortion ruling in Georgia. The recent court decision overturned the abortion ban in Georgia. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Maya Prabhu joins the SE Cupp of Battleground to discuss the implications for the presidential race.

Georgia's law was passed by the state legislature in 2019 and signed by Gov. Brian Kemp, but has been challenged in court since its passage. After the fall of Roe v. Wade in 2022, the law effectively banned abortions after the sixth week of pregnancy, before women often realize they are pregnant. Cardiac activity in the cells of an embryo can then be detected using ultrasound. The law banned abortions once there was a “detectable human heartbeat” – with some exceptions.

Before the law took effect, there were more than 4,400 abortions each month in Georgia. According to the Society of Family Planning, the number has fallen by about 2,400 on a monthly average since the ban began in 2022.

This week, a Fulton County judge blocked the law, saying it violated women's rights to freedom and privacy guaranteed by the state constitution.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled that the law violated a woman's freedom to “control her own body, decide what happens to and within it, and reject government interference in her health care decisions.” He also wrote that Georgia gives women a constitutional right to privacy, which includes making personal health decisions.

The judge wrote that his ruling resets Georgia's abortion law to its previous status, which allowed abortions up to viability, which is generally considered to be around 22 to 24 weeks of pregnancy.

McBurney had already introduced the law in 2022, before the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade declared invalid.

Republican Attorney General Chris Carr plans to appeal the ruling to the state Supreme Court, which previously overturned McBurney's decision on the matter.

As legal battles continue, Georgia clinics are preparing to resume performing abortions for up to 22 weeks. Experts say the ruling could provide temporary relief to neighboring states like North Carolina, where many Georgia residents had traveled for abortion care under the six-week ban. The outcome of the appeal could have far-reaching implications, both in Georgia and throughout the Southern states, where abortion bans remain prevalent.

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