Nebraska teen sentenced to jail after using abortion pills to end pregnancy

The MoJo Daily newsletter, Monday through Friday. [View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter](     July 21, 2023 The devastating repercussions within our post-Roe landscape continue apace. Celeste Burgess, the Nebraska teenager who pleaded guilty to using [abortion pills in order to end a pregnancy,]( has been sentenced to 90 days in jail, [my colleague Madison Pauly reports](. As Madison writes, the case drew national attention for its clear-cut demonstration of how overzealous prosecutors "could and would go after abortion seekers and those who support them" after the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion last year. I expect you are already horrified by this news. But I still want to turn your attention to the following exchange during Thursday's proceedings between Burgess and the presiding judge, Seventh Judicial District Court Judge James Kube, [as reported in Courthouse News:]( “Explain to me why, after the baby was aborted, that you buried the baby and then eventually exhumed the baby, burned its body and then reburied it," Kube said. "Tell me why you did that.” “I was honestly scared and didn’t know what to do," said Burgess, who wore a black long- sleeve shirt with narrow dark gray horizontal stripes black slacks and black boots. “I wanted to do the right thing but I didn’t know what I was doing at the time wasn't the right thing. I do regret my decisions, very much” A moment later, Kube asked: “Didn’t you think it was appropriate to have the baby buried or cremated in a normal fashion?” “Financial wise it has not always been the best with my family," Burgess replied. "I didn’t know exactly how much it would be.” It's hard not to see the terrible disrespect, shame, and utter ridicule in the way this judge treats Burgess—and it makes me downright livid. But it's essential to also understand that men like Kube are everywhere, determined to humiliate women for trying to take control of their lives in a landscape that doesn't want them to succeed. As for Burgess' mother, who helped obtain the pills and pleaded guilty to providing an abortion after 20 weeks gestation, she will be sentenced in September. —Inae Oh Advertisement [Center for Reproductive Rights]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [“Oppenheimer” Is a Good Film That Bolsters a Problematic Narrative]( Was nuking Japanese cities really a necessary evil? BY GREG MITCHELL SPONSORED CONTENT FROM THE CENTER FOR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS   Get a free, limited-edition sticker when you donate! The Center for Reproductive Rights uses the power of law to advance reproductive rights. [Donate today]( and you’ll receive a limited-edition sticker! Your support provides critical resources that strengthen legal protections for abortion rights —so people around the world can make their own decisions, free from political interference. [Trending] [The problem with calling Vermont’s storms a “100-year-flood”]( BY JACKIE FLYNN MOGENSEN   [Florida Board of Education's new guidelines imply slavery benefitted Black people]( BY ARIANNA COGHILL   [Nebraska mom helped her daughter get an abortion. Now her daughter has been sentenced to jail.]( BY MADISON PAULY   [This is how northern Mexico became a climate migration destination]( BY CAROLINE TRACEY Advertisement [Center for Reproductive Rights]( [Special Feature] [Special Feature]( [Is the ocean blue? Hard to say, thanks to the climate crisis.]( More than half of ocean regions experienced color changes in recent decades. BY LYRIC AQUINO [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Donate Monthly]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755