Brain dead pregnant woman kept alive in Georgia—and her son is now 22
Today’s post is by guest author Robert Franklin.
If you have followed pro-life related news recently, you may have heard of Adriana Smith. It is a tragic story of a woman who was declared brain dead while only eight weeks pregnant with a baby boy that the family has named Chance. Adriana is presently being kept on life support for the sake of Chance’s development—a medical intervention required by Georgia state law, according to Emory University Hospital. This has sparked controversy that is closely related to the abortion debate, with many familiar arguments about the rights to life and bodily autonomy being put forth. However, what many don’t know is that a similar case unfolded in Georgia in 2003.
On November 22, 2003, Tara Hawkins was assaulted and suffered severe head injuries that left her unconscious. She was only eighteen years old, and twelve weeks pregnant. She was taken to the hospital where her mother, Nonnie Hawkins, had the legal authority to consent to medical treatment on her behalf.
Physicians were unable to return Tara to consciousness, and within a few days she was declared brain dead—a state of permanent, irreversible, and complete loss of brain function. Physicians tried to persuade Nonnie to withdraw life support—something they would do repeatedly over the next several months. They argued that the child had little chance of survival, and that even if he did survive, he would likely be severely disabled. Nonnie didn’t take their advice. She told them, “I’m believing my child is going to wake up and have this baby.”
Sixteen weeks after the assault, Tara did have that baby. On March 16, 2004, a nurse discovered that Tara had spontaneously delivered a baby boy without any medical assistance. Two days later, Tara was taken off of life support.
Tara’s son, Emmanuel Hawkins, weighed only 2 pounds 10 ounces at birth. He was not expected to survive even 24 hours. He required ten weeks of NICU care for numerous medical problems, including bacterial infection and low blood pressure, and he had to have heart and eye surgery. Still, he survived and continued to grow.
By his first birthday, Emmanuel was completely healthy and living life as a normal toddler, playing peek-a-boo and working on his first steps. Nonnie said he was her saving grace after the death of her daughter. “This whole thing has been a nightmare,” she said. “I would lose my mind if I didn’t have Emmanuel.”
In 2015, eleven-year-old Emmanuel published Bully Me? No Way!, a comic book aimed at empowering students to stand up to bullying. After learning how his mother died, he felt a need to speak out. While speaking to middle school students in 2017, he said, “I want to educate kids so they have the power to take a stand against bullying. I don’t want anyone else to die.”
I don’t claim to know what will happen in the case of Adriana and Chance Smith. But I do know that if Nonnie Hawkins had listened to the physicians who insisted that Emmanuel had no chance, he wouldn’t be here with her today.
Everyone deserves a chance at life. As medicine advances, we’re more capable than ever of offering that chance—even when the odds are long. That’s something worth celebrating and protecting.
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