This was not the first time in the U.S. that a woman has been arrested and charged with a crime for terminating her pregnancy, but it was the first time any woman has been convicted of it. 

According to the charge sheet filed by Galen Pelletier, detective with South Bend Police Department, on July 13,2013, at approximately 9:24 pm, Patel presented to the emergency room at St. Joseph Hospital in Mishawaka, Indiana.

She was bleeding from her vaginal area. The emergency personnel believed that she had recently delivered a child, which she denied. 

Dr Tracy Byrne found an umbilical cord was protruding. But Patel again denied she had just delivered a baby and claimed that she had not even been pregnant.  Dr. Byrne requested a second opinion of Dr Kelly , who was positive that Patel had just delivered a child.

Concerned for the child's welfare, doctors continued to question her about the

whereabouts of the child. Eventually, she told the medical staff that she had delivered a baby in her home in Granger, Indiana and she did not see it breathing or moving and believed it to be dead. She then put the dead body in a bag and placed it in a dumpster behind the Super Target. She further told medical personnel that she was roughly two months along and had a miscarriage.

But doctor's believed that she had been twenty eight (28) to thirty (30) weeks post fertilization.

Fearing for the child, Dr McGuire then drove to the Super Target and began searching in

the dumpsters. He also called the St. Joseph County Police, who joined in the search. They located the body in a dumpster and Dr McGuire determined that it was deceased. Dr McGuire's opinion was that the child was pre-mature and roughly thirty (30) weeks from conception. His external examination noted no reason why the child would not have survived, but cautioned that it was based only upon an external examination.

Later forensic pathologist, Dr Joseph Prahlow determined that the child was pre-mature but at least twenty eight weeks from conception. Dr. Prahlow further concluded that in his opinion, the child had been born alive and had taken a breath. Further testing and investigation are pending.

Officers secured a search warrant for the phone of Patel and found that she discussed the  pregnancy with at least one friend.

Patel admitted that she had obtained two drugs from Hong Kong, in an attempt to abort the child.

According to Dr McGuire, one of those drugs would induce labor, thereby ending her pregnancy.

The other drug was designed to end the life of a fetus, but only if it was within nine weeks old. Dr McGuire advised officers that the second drug would have no effect on a fetus that was twenty-eight or more weeks along.

Attorney Sanford told the judge the pathologist's tests don't prove that the baby was born alive. Sanford told the media that he has big questions about tests the pathologist did and did not do to determine whether the infant was born alive.  

‘So wait. If they can't prove that she gave birth to the baby alive and "caused" its death by neglect, then they will just get her for feticide, despite the fact that each charge negates the possibility of the other. Wow, they really have their bases covered, and Patel will be punished for either giving birth to a stillborn or not wanting to have a child. One way or another, they will take her down,’ an article on Jezebel Open Forums noted.

Patel is the second woman in Indiana to be charged with feticide following the prolonged criminal prosecution of Bei Bei Shuai, who lost her baby when she tried to kill herself.

Shuai, who is from China and Patel are Asians, a fact which was noted by some. But Sanford said he does not see any discrimination in charging them.