Daniel Trotta

(Reuters) – Texas’s local prosecutor has dismissed criminal charges against a woman, 26, who was accused of self-inducing abortion. The case attracted national attention and led to protests by abortion rights advocates.

According to Valley Central.com, Lizelle Herrera was indicted by the Starr County Sheriff’s Office on March 30. A spokesperson for the Starr County Sheriff’s Office stated that she had “intentionally, knowingly, caused the death or injury of an individual through self-induced abortion”.

Gocha Allen Ramirez, Starr County District Attorney said that his office will file a motion for dismissal of charges against her Monday.

Ramirez released a statement saying that she had reviewed Texas laws and concluded that Herrera could not and shouldn’t face prosecution for her allegations.

The sheriff’s office and the district attorney did not respond to questions about her release date.

Starr County lies in Texas’ southern tip at the Rio Grande Valley, bordering Mexico.

Ramirez claimed that the sheriff’s officers had the right to arrest Ramirez as it was “a breach of duty for them” not to ignore her incident. However, he said that the district attorneys can exercise their prosecutorial discretion. His oath to justice is also.

The prosecutor stated, “Following this oath the only right outcome to the matter is to immediately disqualify the indictment against Mrs. Herrera.”

This case also reopened debate about Texas’s restrictive abortion law, which was largely supported by the U.S. Supreme Court. The law, known as Senate Bill 8 bans abortion after six weeks, when many women are aware they are pregnant. It does not exclude women who have been raped.

Starr County Prosecutor, who did not address the question of which legal standard was used, instead referred to Herrera’s “tear” and his family.

Ramirez stated that although the issues in this case are contentious and based upon Texas law, Ramirez indicated that it was not a criminal matter.

On Saturday, a small number of protestors gathered in front of the Sheriff’s Office, being led by La Frontera Fund (an abortion aid group).

Rickie Gonzalez said that the founder of the group, Rickie Gonzalez, miscarried in a hospital. She allegedly confessed to staff at the hospital she tried to induce an abortion.