Prosecutors probe pregnant woman's death in Poland

Prosecutors in southern Poland are probing the death in a hospital of a 37-year-old woman who had been pregnant with twins

WARSAW, Poland -- Prosecutors in southern Poland are probing the death of a 37-year-old woman in a hospital who had been pregnant with twins, a situation in which her family and women's rights groups blame Poland’s strict anti-abortion law, alleging it fatally delayed doctors’ decision to terminate the pregnancy.

Prosecutors in Katowice said Monday they were awaiting the results of three autopsies to determine the cause of the Jan. 25 death of the woman, identified only as Agnieszka T., and the late December deaths of her two fetuses, after which the pregnancy was terminated.

The prosecutors are questioning the woman's husband, her twin sister and the doctors and hospital staff in a probe into potential medical mistakes, a spokesman for the prosecutors, Ireneusz Kunert told The Associated Press.

The woman's family issued a statement saying they suspect sepsis was the cause of the woman's death and allege it was caused by the doctors' decision to continue her pregnancy despite the death of one of the fetuses, and allege the abortion was also delayed after the other fetus' death.