“Ms. Herrera’s case is a terrific example of exactly what we expect to happen,” said Lynn Paltrow, executive director of National Advocates for Pregnant Women, a group that has defended women in abortion-related criminal cases. “You can’t continue to say over and over again that abortion is murder and not expect that police and prosecutors are going to not treat it as murder.”

Many details of Herrera’s arrest remained unknown Monday. Prosecutors never publicly released the criminal indictment or the exact allegations, and in a brief statement Sunday, Starr County District Attorney Gocha Allen Ramirez said his office was moving to dismiss the charge — a direct reversal from its previous stance. Ramirez did not respond to a request for comment Monday......

But abortion researchers warn that as Texas and other states further restrict abortion access, more and more pregnant women will be driven to seek out the procedure themselves, leading to potential criminal investigations. In the past, abortion-related criminal cases have disproportionately affected women of color and poor women......

But if Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court case that legalized abortion in 1973, is overturned by the high court’s now conservative majority, Texas and other states would be free to reverse course. Sepper noted that members of the Legislature have proposed laws that would make the penalty for an abortion capital punishment.