Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

TikToker Speaks Out About What Family Of Brain-Dead Pregnant Woman Forced To Be Kept On Life Support Is Going Through

TikToker Jennifer Comstock (left) speaks on the trauma that Adriana Smith (right) and her family is going through
@positivejen/TikTok; 11Alive/YouTube

A mom whose son was kept on life support so he could donate his organs opened up in a viral TikTok about the nightmarish ordeal the family of Adriana Smith is going through after they were ordered to keep her on life support for months so that doctors can deliver her baby.

A TikToker shed light on the trauma of keeping a brain-dead person alive after a pregnant woman was declared brain-dead more than 90 days ago, and is being kept alive to sustain the life of the fetus.

A 30-year-old pregnant woman named Adriana Smith is a black nurse and mother living in Georgia who sought treatment in February at Northside Hospital after suffering intense headaches while nine weeks pregnant.


Her mother and advocate, April Newkirk, told the media that Smith was released after being administered medication with no CT scans or other tests.

Newkirk talked to the media about her daughter’s life-threatening symptoms being ignored:

“They gave her some medication, but they didn’t do any tests. No CT scan. If they had done that or kept her overnight, they would have caught it. It could have been prevented.”

The next day, Smith’s boyfriend awoke to Smith gasping and gurgling for air in her sleep and contacted emergency services. Smith was transferred to Emory University Hospital, where CT scans showed blood clots in her brain, and soon the doctors declared Smith brain dead.

The family’s nightmare became worse when they were informed that under Georgia’s anti-abortion LIFE Act, medical staff is legally required to maintain life support until the fetus reaches viability at 32 weeks.

The Living Infants Fairness and Equality Act, also known as Georgia House Bill 481 or the heartbeat law, is a state-wide consequence of the 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade that was signed into law by pro-life Governor Brian Kemp in 2019, banning most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.

In Smith’s case, Republican State Senator Ed Setzler, who sponsored the LIFE Act, supports the medical staff’s risk-adverse interpretation of the law:

“I think it is completely appropriate that the hospital do what they can to save the life of the child. I think this is an unusual circumstance, but I think it highlights the value of innocent human life. I think the hospital is acting appropriately.”

The hospital has kept Smith on unresponsive life support even as doctors found fluid in the baby’s brain. Doctors plan to perform a C-section on Smith in early August.

And even though the baby, whom the family has named “Chance,” is showing some improvement with a strong heartbeat and measurements, the family has expressed frustration over not having a say or a legal means in Smith’s medical care or pregnancy.

Newkirk discussed the medical staff’s decision to keep Smith alive:

“We didn’t have a choice or a say about it. We want the baby. That’s a part of my daughter. But the decision should have been left to us, not the state.”

The grieving mother has been visiting her daughter daily and bringing Smith’s youngest son to see her, who reportedly thinks his mother is sleeping:

“It's torture for me. I see my daughter breathing, but she’s not there. And her son — I bring him to see her."

Newkirk’s interview with 11Alive News can be seen below:

- YouTube11Alive/YouTube

The family’s suffering is shared by TikTok user Jennifer Comstock, whose 30-year-old son was declared brain dead and kept alive to stabilize his organs for donation while medical staff found donor recipients. In her video, she discusses the ongoing medical interventions and medications that “would fix one thing, and another would go wrong.”

But Comstock highlights how her son had chosen to be an organ donor, while Smith didn’t have a choice:

“My son wanted to be an organ donor, and that is why we continued to do it. And my son saved lives. But I don't think you guys understand. This woman is not in a vegetative state; she's not in a coma. She's dead. Her body is not functioning. Her brain is not producing the hormones required to sustain a pregnancy.”

Comstock’s TikTok can be seen below:

@positivejen

I realize she is 21 weeks along now . She was 9 weeks when this started. my son dies July 15th 2023. Don’t know why I said 5th Please see my other posts on this topic.m#grief #loss #adrianasmith #georgia #pregnant #braindeath #prochoice

Comstock echoed Newkirk’s pain as the family is being put through torture as they wait and watch their daughter’s body deteriorate in state-enforced hopes of saving the fetus. Like Comstock, many have expressed their outrage and sadness over the law that has directly affected Smith and her family.

Their reactions can be seen below:

@marvs_20001/TikTok

@anney800/TikTok

@battlematron67/TikTok

@pinkdogwoodstudio/TikTok

@tmhifsut/TikTok

@danniegirl1972/TikTok







Georgia Democrats have been calling on Governor Kemp to clarify the legality of the LIFE Act regarding Smith’s case.

Georgia State Senator Nabilah Islam Parkes held a press conference yesterday and sent a formal inquiry for a binding legal opinion on the House Bill from the attorney general on what qualifies as a medical emergency for an abortion, a definition on fetal conditions incompatible with life, and why that guidance has not been made explicitly to medical providers and hospitals.

Since the reversal of Roe v. Wade, Georgia is one of 13 states to ban abortion and enact gestational limits.

A GoFundMe campaign for Adriana Smith and her family has raised over $ 130,000 with 3,000 donations.

More from Trending

Bernadette Peters; Cole Escola
Rob Kim/Getty Images; TheStewartofNY/FilmMagic

Bernadette Peters Offers Hilarious Reaction To Cole Escola's Tribute To Her Iconic Gown At The Tony Awards

Awards shows always have two competitions: the actual awards, and the red carpet outside.

Cole Escola, star and playwright of the hit show Oh, Mary!, did both at the Tony Awards this year. Escola, who won the Best Leading Actor in a Play for their performance, first showed up prior to the event to show off their intricate and stunning look, an homage to actor Bernadette Peters' iconic look from the 1999 Tony Awards.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pam Bondi
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

AG Pam Bondi's Brother Blames 'Rabid Partisans' After Getting Absolutely Walloped In DC Election

MAGA Republican President Donald Trump has often bragged about his overwhelming victory over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, claiming he won by a landslide. But while he did manage to finally win a popular vote in 2024, something he lost in 2016 and 2020, it was hardly a landslide.

About 90 million eligible, registered voters didn't bother to vote at all in 2024, while Trump garnered only ~77 million votes, VP Harris received about ~75 million—a difference of only ~2 million which is less than the population of Trump's hometown of Queens, New York City.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kristi Noem
Alex Brandon - Pool/Getty Images

Kristi Noem's Past Views On National Guard Come Back To Bite Her After She Backs Trump Amid LA Protests

California Governor Gavin Newsom called out the hypocrisy of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem after sharing a clip from last year showing she'd once criticized the Biden administration for considering deploying the National Guard when Democrats suggested it as a response to Texas' immigration crackdown at the time.

That's noteworthy because Noem has made an about-face, defending President Donald Trump's decision to deploy the National Guard to Los Angeles amid ongoing protests in response to his administration's immigration raids by claiming he'd taken this drastic step "for the safety of this community ... to keep peace."

Keep ReadingShow less
Gavin Newsom; Jim Jordan
Bill Pugliano/Getty Images; Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Gavin Newsom Perfectly Calls Out Jim Jordan's Hypocrisy After Jordan Rants About What We Do 'In America'

After Ohio Representative Jim Jordan criticized Los Angeles protesters who've held Mexican flags in a symbolic move against President Donald Trump's immigration policies, California Governor Gavin Newsom called out his hypocrisy by sharing images of the January 6 insurrection.

Jordan, who chairs the House Judiciary Account, used the body's official X account to admonish "Democrat-run Los Angeles" by sharing a Fox News video of a protester who waved a Mexican flag as he circled a burning car on his motorcycle.

Keep ReadingShow less

People Break Down Seemingly 'Harmless' Symptoms That Require A Trip To The ER

Always pay attention to your body.

Every bump and sore can mean something.

Keep ReadingShow less