Hospital Forces Woman in Active Labor to Attend Zoom Court for Refusing C-Section

NEED TO KNOW

• Cherise Doyley, a birthing doula, refused a C-section despite hospital concerns about uterine rupture risks
• Staff forced her to appear in Zoom court from her hospital bed — without legal representation — and a judge ruled the hospital could perform the surgery in an emergency without her consent
• Doyley ultimately underwent a C-section and later criticized the hospital, saying it violated her rights as a patient

A Florida woman was brought into a virtual court hearing while she was in active labor after she refused to have a C-section.

In September 2024, Cherise Doyley — a pregnant mother of three from Jacksonville, Florida — arrived at the University of Florida Health Hospital after going into labor. Doyley, a professional birthing doula, informed medical staff of her birth plan: She wanted to try for a natural birth. However, doctors expressed concerns about the risk of uterine rupture and said she should give birth via C-section.

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A uterine rupture is a life-threatening emergency where the uterine wall tears open and causes severe abdominal pain, vaginal bleeding and fetal distress. It’s rare, occurring in about 1 in 300 deliveries, but is more likely in people who attempt a vaginal delivery after having a previous C-section delivery, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

According to a ProPublica report, Doyley said she understood the risk to be less than 2% and told doctors that she wanted to try having a vaginal delivery before consenting to a C-section.

She reportedly argued that recovering from her past C-sections was difficult and left her with complications, including a hemorrhage that put her back in the hospital for a week. Additionally, she expressed concerns that she would not be able to focus on caring for a newborn — or her other three children — while recovering from surgery.

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Hours later, while Doyley was still in labor, nurses entered the room and placed a tablet in front of her hospital bed and informed her that she was being taken to court over her medical decision. In a recording of the court hearing obtained by ProPublica, Doyley called it “the craziest thing I’ve ever seen.”

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On the call were several doctors, lawyers, hospital staff and a judge. Doyley had no legal representation, ProPublica reports.

Judge Michael Kalil informed Doyley that the state had filed an emergency petition at the hospital’s request to grant an emergency C-section in the interest of her unborn child.

During the hearing, doctors from the hospital expressed their concerns for the baby’s welfare and the risk of a vaginal birth. Doyley then testified that she felt there was little concern for her own wellbeing.

“I still have rights as an American citizen and as a patient that I am allowed to decide what goes on with me and my body and my baby,” she said in a clip of her testimony.

“If it’s between them choosing whether I have to live or the baby has to live, I did tell them that I want to live,” she continued. “I have other children out here in the world that need me. And that is my right because at the end of the day, if I die from a C-section, nobody on this call is going to take care of my children.”

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Doyley said she cared very much about her unborn child but believed her case was not an emergency necessitating surgery. She wanted to at least try having a vaginal delivery. “They’re going to tie me up and go give me a C-section against my will?” she said in the hearing, per the outlet.

After three hours of testimony, the judge did not order an immediate C-section. However, he said the hospital could perform the surgery without her consent if an emergency arises.

Overnight, doctors reportedly said the baby’s heart rate had dropped and they rushed Doyley into surgery. She ultimately gave birth via C-section and her baby girl, Arewa, now 1, was taken to the NICU, ProPublica reports.

UFHealth Jacksonville did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

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Today, Doyley said she still feels violated by the hospital forcing her into the surgery.

“When we use the courts to basically strong-arm, bully someone into an unnecessary medical procedure against their will, it’s akin to torture, in my eyes,” she told the outlet.

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Mentally competent patients have a right to say no to medical procedures that a doctor recommends, according to the American Medical Association. However, pregnant patients are the exception.

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In some states, hospitals can seek a court order if a pregnant patient refuses a recommended intervention, arguing that the fetus has separate rights that must be protected.

“There aren’t any other instances where you would invade the body of one person in order to save the life of another,” Lois Shepherd, a bioethics expert at the University of Virginia School of Law, told CNN.

Cases like these are more prevalent following the 2022 overturn of Roe v. Wade. Nearly 30 states have passed laws allowing hospitals to invalidate a pregnant patient’s advance directives.

“It reflects a deep understanding of women as the incubators,” Elizabeth Kukura, a law professor at Drexel University, told ProPublica. “Women in their role as childbearers.”

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