James Andrew Welden has pleaded guilty to tricking his pregnant ex-girlfriend into taking a pill that caused her to have an abortion. The son of a Florida fertility doctor, Welden stole his father's prescription pad and used it to get his hands on Cytotec, a drug that induces labor. Welden told his girlfriend, Remee Jo Lee that the pills he was giving her were antibiotics prescribed by his father. Welden relabeled the bottle as amoxicillin and gave Lee a tablet. After taking the pill Lee lost the seven-week-old fetus she was carrying.
On Monday, September 9, Welden went before a federal judge in Tampa, Florida and pled guilty to causing his ex-girlfriend's miscarriage. Welden gave Lee the pill in March, it is alleged Welden did not want his other girlfriend to find out about Lee's pregnancy. Welden took a deal and agreed to spend 13 years in jail on two counts, wire fraud and tampering with evidence in exchange for prosecutors dropping a murder charge. According to the Los Angeles Times, text messages sent between Welden and Lee prove Lee was excited and wanted to keep the baby, but Welden did not.
"I think the case is tragic from all sides," Welden's attorney Todd Foster said to the L.A Times. "It's just a very bad situation from every angle -- it's terrible for the lady, it's terrible for the family, it's bad all around." Welden was able to trick Lee into taking the pill the day after the girl visited Welden's father for a checkup. The doctor told prosecutors that the fetus Lee was carrying was "healthy: a viable embryo measuring 8.26 millimeters." The next day Welden told Lee she had an infection and needed to take the pills his father prescribed.
Welden told Lee she needed to take three pills a day in order to get rid of the infection. Trusting her boyfriend, the father of her child and the son of a doctor Lee planned on doing what Welden said. However after taking just one pill the 26-year-old was rushed to the hospital with abdominal cramps and bleeding. Emergency care doctors asked Lee to show them the pills she was taking and that is when they told her she took an abortion pill and not an antibiotic. "There's just no words for the horror I wake up with every day that this is my reality. There's no escaping it, there's no turning it off," Lee said to the media.
Welden was led out of the courtroom after accepting his plea deal without saying a word. The 28-year-old had to be escorted by security for his own safety. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for December 5.
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