Texas Man Blames Strict Abortion Laws For Wife’s Tragic Death After Miscarriage

A Texas man is speaking out after the tragic death of his wife during a miscarriage, saying the state’s abortion laws left doctors afraid to act—and it cost her life.

Hope Ngumezi, now a single father to two young boys, says he still can’t believe he had to bury his wife, Porsha, after she began miscarrying at 11 weeks pregnant and was taken to a Texas hospital.

“I blame the doctors, I blame the hospital, and I blame the state of Texas,” Ngumezi told CBS News. “The law is reckless. It’s dangerous.”

Texas’ 2021 law—known as the Texas Heartbeat Act—bans nearly all abortions in the state, with only narrow exceptions when the mother’s life is in danger. But doctors across the state say the law lacks clear guidance on what counts as a “serious risk” to a pregnant woman’s life, and some fear legal consequences if they act too soon.

In Porsha’s case, doctors reportedly did not perform a D&C, a common procedure used to manage incomplete miscarriages. Though the same method is used in some abortions, it’s also a standard treatment for patients like Porsha, who was experiencing excessive bleeding. Ngumezi believes the doctors hesitated out of fear of prosecution under Texas law.

“I just felt like the doctor turned his back on us,” he said. “Like he was thinking, ‘I don’t want to go to jail. I don’t want to lose my license. So the best thing is to protect myself.’”

Porsha later went into cardiac arrest and died.

State data shows Texas’ maternal mortality rate jumped 56% between 2019 and 2022, far outpacing the national increase of just 11% in the same period, according to the Gender Equity Policy Institute.

State Senator Bryan Hughes, who authored the abortion ban, responded to concerns by saying, “Most hospitals are getting this right, but some are not.” He maintains that treating a miscarriage is not classified as an abortion under Texas law—but also acknowledged that lawmakers are working to clarify the language.

For Ngumezi, clarification came too late.

“We shouldn’t have to wonder—if something goes wrong, will a doctor be too scared to help?” he said.

It’s a question that now weighs heavily on families across Texas, including right here in Lubbock.