After more than a year of court battles, two prominent pro-life organizations secured the release of the unredacted copy of the autopsy of an 18-year-old victim of abortion that the state of Colorado was hoping no one would ever see.According to Operation Rescue and Life Legal Defense Foundation, Lexi Arguello died on February 6, 2025 following a second-trimester surgical abortion at 21 weeks and 6 days gestation. Public testimony revealed that the Planned Parenthood clinic where the abortion took place waited too long to call 911. Even worse, when they finally did call for help, emergency care was further delayed by requesting the ambulance arrive with no lights or sirens – known as “a silent approach.” As a result, Lexi died at the hospital hours later.
Specifically, the forensic pathologist found that Lexi developed disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) — a catastrophic clotting disorder — after the procedure, leading to cardiovascular collapse and multi-organ failure. The report identified “probable amniotic fluid embolism” (AFE), a rare and often fatal emergency that can occur during invasive abortion procedures, as a significant contributing condition.
Learning this information is vital for protecting the health of other young women like Lexi.
“This autopsy is one of the few public documents that can expose Planned Parenthood for wrongdoing in the tragic death of Lexi Arguello,” said Troy Newman, President of Operation Rescue. “It’s also a document than can prove just how dangerous unregulated and unlicensed Colorado abortion clinics have become. Women are dying and state officials are looking the other way.”
Even worse, they appeared to be covering up the truth. When Operation Rescue requested Lexi’s autopsy less than two weeks after her death, the organization received a highly redacted copy with any information related to the abortion or possible complications blacked out. Even the cause of death was partially redacted.
“This was not a narrow privacy redaction,” explained Alexandra Snyder, CEO of Life Legal. “Colorado officials concealed medical findings and Lexi’s official cause of death from the public to shield a politically favored industry from scrutiny.”
When it became clear that Larimar County Coroner Stephen Hanks was not willing to release the full file on this case, Operation Rescue contacted Life Legal Defense Foundation for help.
Working with Colorado attorney Tim Goddard, the legal team prepared to file suit against the coroner who was clearly misinterpreting multiple laws and regulations to withhold public information about Lexi’s cause of death. However, before the team could submit the suit, Coroner Hanks submitted his own request to the courts to keep Lexi’s autopsy heavily redacted. He claimed redacting Lexi’s autopsy was in the best interest of the public as it might deter women from seeking “reproductive healthcare “(i.e. abortions).
Newman added, “The Coroner fully understood that women might not enter an abortion clinic when they know the staff have injured or even killed a patient. Only, instead of believing women deserve all the facts when choosing where they go for healthcare, Mr. Hanks thought it better they be kept in the dark and the truth about Lexi’s death kept under wraps. This is how abortion radicals keep abortion in business – by constantly hiding the truth.”
Thankfully, the judge did not agree with the coroner’s assessment and ordered Hanks to provide the unredacted copy to Operation Rescue.
Attorney Snyder emphasized, “Lexi’s death highlights the dangerous lack of oversight surrounding Colorado’s abortion industry. The public has a right to know what happens inside Planned Parenthood, especially when taxpayer-funded abortion providers continue fighting common-sense safety standards.”
The release of the unredacted autopsy finally allows the public — and Lexi’s family — to more fully examine the circumstances surrounding her death and determine whether additional questions still need to be answered.
Newman concluded, “We have spent over a year investigating Lexi’s death, gathering records and conducting interviews. We fully believe Planned Parenthood failed Lexi in numerous ways, including delaying emergency care that may have saved her life. We also suspect Planned Parenthood led family members to believe Lexi’s death was unavoidable. We encourage the family to reach out to a malpractice attorney. If needed, Operation Rescue is always willing to put family members in touch with legal help.”
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