Denver Newsroom, Apr 23, 2020 / 02:35 pm (CNA).- A British judge’s order requiring a contraceptive device be implanted in a woman with learning disabilities against her will is “deeply problematic,” a bioethicist has said.
Justice Gwynneth Knowles issued a written ruling April 21 after a hearing at the Court of Protection in London that took place via Skype due to the coronavirus lockdown.
The BBC reported that the judge decided that an implanted contraceptive device would be in the best interests of the woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons.
She said the woman, who is in her 20s and pregnant, lacked the mental capacity to make decisions about contraception. The court heard that the woman had given birth to a number of children, who have been taken into foster care. Specialists noted that she had suffered from a number of health problems and argued that further pregnancies could present significant risks.