Funeral held for woman kept on life support until baby could be delivered

Adriana Smith, the Atlanta mother who was declared brain-dead but kept medically alive under Georgia’s anti-abortion law, has been laid to rest.

Smith, who turned 31 while on life support, suffered a catastrophic stroke in February and was declared brain-dead at eight weeks pregnant, but her family had no choice but to keep her alive until doctors delivered her son by emergency C-section.

The case has become a lightning rod for the impact of state-level abortion bans in medical emergencies and has given rise to questions about fetal personhood.

The “vague” language of Georgia’s LIFE Act, which doesn’t clearly address cases of brain death, left Smith’s family to navigate legal and medical complications during a devastating time, according to advocates.

At Smith’s funeral Saturday at Fairfield Baptist Church in Lithonia, just outside of Atlanta, loved ones addressed the difficulty of the nurse’s death and vowed her voice “will be heard,” 11Alive reports.

“Adriana’s life mattered and we’re gonna make sure … from this house to the state house to Washington, D.C., that Adriana’s voice will be heard,” Evangelist Triana Arnold James told the congregation, according to the outlet.

Democratic State Rep. Park Cannon also rallied behind enacting “Adriana’s Law,” which she said would “affirm that individuals retain agency over their bodies and medical decisions even under restrictive fetal personhood regimes.”

“We believe bodily autonomy should be upheld in Georgia by enacting Adriana’s Law,” Cannon said.

Smith’s younger sister Naya spoke at the service, where she praised her sibling’s “love, kindness and wisdom.”

In a poignant tribute at the end of the service, the Atlanta Metropolitan Nursing Honor Guard formally relieved Smith of her duties as a nurse and recited the “final call of duty” in her honor, 11Alive reported.

Smith’s son Chance was born prematurely earlier this month, weighing about 1 pound 13 ounces.

He is still in a neonatal intensive care unit. Smith has another 7-year-old son.

Smith’s mother, April Newkirk, said that doctors told her Georgia’s anti-abortion law required that her daughter remain on life support until the fetus was able to survive outside the womb.

The law was among a wave of anti-abortion measures enacted in Republican-led states after the Supreme Court revoked a constitutional right to abortion care by overturning the landmark Roe v Wade ruling in 2022.

Georgia’s law restricts abortion once cardiac activity is detected, or at roughly six weeks of pregnancy, before most women know they are pregnant. The law also grants personhood rights to a fetus, effectively providing the same full rights and legal protections as a person.

“I’m not saying we would have chosen to terminate her pregnancy. But I’m saying we should have had a choice,” Newkirk told 11Alive in a previous interview.

Newkirk felt the same way after Chance’s birth.

“I think all women should have a choice about their body,” she said. “And I think I want people to know that.”

Smith’s loved ones gathered on June 15 to mark her 31st birthday and celebrate her life. Her life support machine was turned off a few days later.

Georgia, Atlanta, Abortion Rights, Adriana Smith