Gov. Gavin Newsom this week denied a request by Louisiana officials to extradite a Sonoma County doctor for allegedly providing abortion medication to a woman in that state via mail.
Federal and state laws allow Newsom to reject extradition requests in cases where the alleged crime happened in California.
“Louisiana’s request is denied. My position on this has been clear since 2022: We will not allow extremist politicians from other states to reach into California and try to punish doctors based on allegations that they provided reproductive health care services,” Newsom said in a news release. “Not today. Not ever.”
The case revolves around Dr. Remy Coeytaux, who in 2023 allegedly provided a woman in St. Tammany Parish with the drugs mifepristone and misoprostol, which she then took to terminate her pregnancy, according an affidavit filed by the Louisiana Bureau of Investigations.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved both drugs as safe to take within a certain period of time from the start of a patient’s last menstrual period, in most cases, and both are legal in California.
Louisiana officials said Coeytaux provided the drug via aidaccess.org, a website established in 2018 by Dutch physician and women’s rights activist Dr. Rebecca Gomperts to make the medication available to women in all 50 states — even in the 13 where abortion is illegal, including Louisiana.
In May 2024, a St. Tammany Parish judge issued an arrest warrant for Coeytaux on suspicion of “criminal abortion by means of abortion inducing drugs,” and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry this week requested his extradition.
If convicted, Coeytaux could face up to 50 years “at hard labor,” according to a news release from Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, who said she is also pursuing a similar case against a New York doctor.
“This is not health care; it’s drug dealing,” Murrill said.
Both California Attorney General Rob Bonta and state Assemblymember Chris Rogers, D-Santa Rosa, applauded Newsom’s refusal to cooperate with Louisiana officials.
“Louisiana is a state that denies women the right to control their own bodies,” Rogers said in a news release. “We will not accept their attempt to control when and how our medical professionals choose to render care as well.”
On Wednesday, Bonta posted this on social media: “California is a safe haven for reproductive rights. We will not be bullied by anti-abortion states.”
Coeytaux didn’t respond to a request for comment.