Abstract : This paper characterizes the Mexican abortion laws using the case of a girl aged 14 years, Paulina Ramírez Jacinta, who was raped, became pregnant, and chose to terminate the unwanted pregnancy, yet was denied an abortion. This case clearly showed that Mexican abortion law, despite its legality, is highly restrictive in nature and, in a way, violated the human rights of Paulina. Even though it permits first-trimester abortion procedures for rape victims or women whose lives are endangered by the pregnancy, many pregnant women still resort to illegal abortion. To further aggravate the restrictive nature of the law, Baja California state Rep. Martin Dominguez Rocha made a proposal to eliminate the rape exception in the state's penal code. The case of Paulina will be handled by the lawyers at the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy in order to arrive at a settlement favorable to Paulina.
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