Thursday, October 18, 2012

Celebrity Chef Charged With Attempted Murder After Secretly Giving Girlfriend Abortion Drug

Joshua Woodward has owned restaurants in Los Angeles and New York, including Table 8, and was once partners with Govind Armstrong. Back in 2009, Joshua's girlfriend got pregnant. He immediately told her that he wanted her to get an abortion. She refused. Suddenly after a few weeks of hammering to get an abortion he backed off. He then told her he wanted to be a part of her life and the baby. According to the charges brought yesterday in Los Angeles, Joshua tried to induce a miscarriage in his girlfriend, who was 13 weeks pregnant,  using a topical application of the early-stage abortion drug misoprostol while the couple engaged in foreplay. The girlfriend has stated that Joshua kept reaching into his backpack during foreplay. After she miscarried a few days later and saw white powder in her underwear, she notified police who advised her to not tell Joshua anything and to invite him over again. She did and police were there and arrested him with the drug in his possession which he tried to get rid of while talking to police. He has been charged with attempted murder and bail set at $4M.


73 comments:

a non a miss said...

Asshole. Wrap it up or abstain if you don't want babies.

Karen said...

What a douchecanoe.

OneGirlRevolution said...

What an asshole, on so many levels. I'm not quite sure where the attempted murder would come from though. Assault, yes. I guess a complication of miscarriage might be hemorraging or something...still, I think assault seems more realistic.

OneGirlRevolution said...

@karen...

Lol. I love the term "douchecanoe"

Patty said...

Did this happen three years ago or recently? And why did it take 3 yrs to bring charges?

dia papaya said...

No words for this. What a controlling, manipulative asshole!

I agree with attempted murder charge. Bad move, dude.

Unknown said...

He watched Law and Order

libby said...

Those drugs are quite serious, and not to be used lightly. Good lord. He could have killed her. What if there had been major complications?

Unknown said...

Wow, what a scum bag!!
That is just so gross. I hope he gets the max amount of jail time.

Amber said...

Holy shit. I have nothing else to even say other than that. Wow.

libby said...

If he in any way affected her future fertility, I hope she sues him for every dime he has, and uses the $ to adopt. That poor woman.

SusanB said...

Bastard.

pinch weasel said...

So I'm assuming attempted murder refers to the girlfriend, not the fetus, right? Because he DID kill the fetus. I'm a diehard pro-choicer, but if they're throwing around attempted murder charges, well, his attempt was successful, so it MUST mean the girlfriend, yes?Just want to make sure I understand this correctly...heh.

Kelly said...

What a sick fuck. That poor woman. I hope he gets what's coming to him.

Feisty said...

@Stephanie Knipp - My first thought too, I think I saw this on an SVU episode. Only difference was it was college kids and the guy was a smooth talker who had done it before.

All that brain damage being said, what an asshole.

Jolene Jolene said...

HOW AWFUL! What a piece of shit.

See, this puts so much in perspective to me. Yes, there are guys who sleep around or celebrities who people write off completely because they say stupid shit in interviews and put their foot in their mouth, but men like THIS GUY are the real assholes in the world. What a terrible human being.

AKM said...

He did a heinous thing, but why do we always assume that the condom/birth control-insistence is purely on the man?

Mama June said...

If a man doesn't want kids he should get a vasectomy! How sis he even get his hands on this particular drug? Wth?

car54 said...

WTF? What kind of human being does something like this????

Jesus, how does this girl ever trust anyone again after having this happen to her?

CandlesBliss said...

@Stephaine Kipp OMG I thought the SAME thing. Smh, he should be put underneath the jail

pinch weasel said...

I don't think that's what people mean. I think they mean of he IS that concerned about pregnancy, to wrap it up. It's NOT just his responsibility, but again, if you're THAT worried about it, DO something about it. It's FULLY in his power to slap a rubber on there.

Karen said...

@AKM, whoever doesn't want to conceive should be in charge of birth contorl, regarless of gender. In this case, she wanted the baby and he didn't so the onus was on him.

Hammer_Girl said...

Never go into battle without a helmet. Or shield.

Karen said...

*regardless

mannyv said...

Well, he didn't try and kill his girlfriend, so the attempted murder charge is bogus.

The only thing he could get charged for would be something like giving someone prescription drugs without their consent.

GladysKravitz said...

I agree with mannyv. Technically, he induced an abortion at 13 weeks. Since I'm pro choice, I don't believe he should be charged with murder or even homicide. THe baby was definitely not viable at that gestation. On the other hand, he assaulted the woman, and should be charged with THAT.

Anonymous said...

Well you certainly have more details than the LA Times did in their article this morning. I wonder why she hadn't already told him she lost the baby, since the initial arrest took place one week after her miscarriage. Possibly a power play on her part? I'm also trying to figure out how she could have failed to notice white powder in her underwear, or how she could have put said underwear on without shaking the powder out.

Sunny said...

This is all sorts of complicated. Even when I googled this story to get more information, every search result phrased the situation differently: attempted fetus murder, attempted murder to induce a miscarriage, intent to cause a miscarriage. Even KTLA (at least their website) referred to "the child's death".

This is a horrible situation, but I don't think he will be charged with anything serious since it sets a dangerous legal precedent on a very complicated hot-button issue

All I can say: this guy is a disgusting asshole and I feel terrible for the woman in this story

chewysmama said...

Uhhh..he killed a baby people! How is that not murder? People get outraged when animals are abused, but it's cool to kill babies! To call that charge bogus? That's outrageous!

boomom22 said...

Thank you chewysmama. How does the fact that the baby wasn't viable make the child less than human? Sorry, say what you will, but abortion is killing a human.

Jolene Jolene said...

The topic of contraception/who's responsible is interesting. I think both parties are responsible. Before I got married, I never expected the guy to be responsible (you'd hope he would be, but I never relied on him) because it was ME who would be pregnant, not him. I think the reason why people are saying HE should've wrapped it up is because he was the one who tried to abort it and didn't want it, not her.

My question is why did he feel like his only option was to abort the baby and without her consent? I'm not saying it's okay when a man takes zero responsibility for his child, but leaving and never turning back would probably be a better option than aborting the baby his unknowing girlfriend wanted. Right...?

Amber said...

I kind of think the attempted murder charge is fair, because he purposely caused the abortion unbeknownst to the mother who was going to birth and raise the child. If the mother chooses to abort or miscarries, that's one thing. But he intentionally caused harm to the fetus she was planning on raising, and could potentially have caused serious harm to her.

Sarah said...

Yeah, the viable fetus stuff is applicable to the mother. No one else can choose to give her an abortion!!! I am pro choice, but if she made the choice to raise and love her baby, anyone else killing her child is murder!!

jax said...

what Amber said. 13 weeks is pretty late to have an abortion by choice.

I think 12 weeks is the cut off in Canada.

Jane said...

This isn't a pro choice/pro life argument because she chose to KEEP it. The abortion argument should gomoutnthe window once the woman chooses to keep the baby. Viable or not, charging him or just assault or slipping her something is pathetic and a hand slap ...he deserves more What a sick fuck.

auntliddy said...

Sarah, well said. I was ouzzling iver tye rightness or wrongness of this, but u hv stated it beautifully, and i agree. And him? God knows what hes putting in the food! Sicko!

auntliddy said...

This makes me question what to do if female becomes pregnant and man doesnt want to hv a child? Even if she has him sign a no child support agreement, the court will supercede it and order child support. So what do u do in these cases?

AKM said...

I'm sure I'm going to regret this, especially with such a pro-abortion crowd here, but...

What if the situation had been reversed, and the father wanted the baby but the woman chose to abort? That would be okay with everyone, right? But why should the mother be the only one who gets to exercise her right to choose and decide if the child will be born or not? And when that abortion happens, there's no assault or murder charge there, now is there? And no one would call HER a sick fuck, would they? It's interesting.

Aoife said...

If the woman involved did not want the baby she had time to handle the situation herself. For whatever reason - we all know the words to "Gold Digger" right -
he didn't want the baby.

By inducing a miscarriage on his unwilling partner he is guilty of something but not murder since at 13 weeks the fetus isn't viable outside of the womb.

He's a douche, but I'm not lawyer and I don't know what he can be charged with here. I'm sure the anti-choice crowd will lap this up.

Sarah said...

AKM- I get what you're going for, but that shit doesn't fly. There is a huge difference between someone getting an abortion without the consent of their lover and a lover PERFORMING an abortion without your knowledge or consent.

auntliddy said...

I do know of caes like that, in one the court forced the mother to gv burth, but she had zero to with child. I guess its just nature; the woman is the baby carrier. All kinds of complicated. And no one us pro abortion, they are oro choice.

AKM said...

Well, auntliddy, with all due respect, as long as the pro-abortion side calls me anti-abortion instead of pro-life, that's the term I'm using as well.

And Sarah, again, with all due respect, I DON'T see a huge difference. A difference, perhaps, but it ain't really huge.

Sarah said...

Is this guy a doctor? No. He administered a powerful medication without her knowledge, powerful enough to kill a growing fetus. Did he know if she has any allergies or sensitivity to medications or drugs? What drugs or supplements she takes and any potential interactions? I seriously doubt it.
He honestly could have killed her. I get where epilepsy like to have these debates when there are these fine lines in grey areas of the law, but this guy killed a child that she wanted, and who knows what sort of medical complications she suffered or could have suffered as a result.
I had a miscarriage at around 12 weeks a few years ago. I had pain and cramping for nearly 6 months, not to mention the emotional pain.
You can play the other side of the issue all you want, but what this man did was pure evil.

Unknown said...

AKM, because she carries the fetus in HER BODY, it's her choice.

And nobody is pro abortion. You think women go out and get pregnant on purpose so they can have an abortion?

It's a very serious decision to be made by a woman and her doctor.

AKM said...

Mary Jones, I am not stupid, and you don't need to talk down to me. I was also pro-abortion myself for 22 years, so I definitely understand how you and your side think and feel. I can respectfully debate with someone and it doesn't have to be ugly, so let's not make it such.

Then again, like I said, I should have known better with this crowd. THAT said, scroll up and you'll see that not everyone disagrees with me, and that's okay. Most people here DO disagree with me, and that's okay, too.

Lauren said...

Where on earth did he get that kind of medication??

Sunny said...

@Lauren
I read that it's used for ulcerations of the skin, but it was discovered that it can cause uterine contractions resulting in miscarriages. The box is now clearly marked with the warning

Lauren said...

Thank you, Sunny! I was genuinely curious.

FalseProfit said...

Another argument in favor of a man's right to choose.

Equality, folks! If it's good for the goose...

Sunny said...

@AKM
I used to categorize myself as pro-life, but I guess I have to say I'm pro-choice but hate abortion and see every abortion as a loss of life.

I think many people here would say, Uh duh. Everyone dislikes abortion, but I have friends who have had multiple. My oldest (longest running) friend in the world has had six abortions, her former neighbor had eight, and my friend's hairstylist has also had eight. I am thankful I have never had an unwanted pregnancy, but I would hope that if someone did and chose an abortion, that they would take great care and precaution to not have it happen again.

I just hope maybe we can all agree that we'd like to see the number of abortions reduced. I think that starts with us as parents not putting our heads in the sand and talking to our kids about using birth control. It's not giving permission to have sex. It's protecting our children from having to make an extremely difficult decision

Pogue Mahone said...

He's an evil murderer and I'm glad he got caught!

AKM said...

Well-said, Sunny.

For the record, as a social worker in training, I certainly don't judge women who have had or who are considering abortion, and I would have to discuss all three options with a client if that came up. I just believe that the other two options other than abortion can be very valid and satisfying choices as well. I also believe...well, enough about that.

I would like to recommend a book for anyone on either side. (Or those who see both sides and feel like they're in the middle, or those who can't pick a side. Whatever the case may be.) It's called UNPLANNED and it's written by a former PP director who is now pro-life. Fascinating book, truly.

discoflux said...

Regardless of anyone's personal stance on abortion - this guy pulled some FUCKED UP shit.

Along with miscarriage comes the risk of hemorrhagic bleeding which can result in her death. His intention to induce miscarriage to end the life cycle of the fetus shows murderous intent. I could be completely wrong, but I think that precedent has been set that until a fetus is viable outside of the womb, you can not charge him with murder.

He DID, however, put the woman in a position where she could have perished to due blood loss or even an allergic reaction to the medication. I will be interested to see how the death of the fetus is viewed in the courts and if they can confirm that the miscarriage occurred as a result of the application of misoprostol. As it is usually administered via IV or tablet - the ground could be a bit shaky as to the efficacy of topically applied medication. I speak solely from an analytical standpoint. Not because I in any way am looking for a way to let this fucknut off the hook.

That being said - FUCK THIS GUY. THROW HIS ASS IN JAIL FOR A LOOOOOOOOONG TIME.

pinch weasel said...

Oh for crying out loud...pro-choice is NOT pro-abortion. That's just inflammatory bullshit propaganda. And as soon as men are able to get pregnant, they can make all the decisions they want. Your argument is not "interesting", your argument is (willfully?) moronic. You are really on a roll today. O_O

Tania said...

This story makes me so sad. What a horrible human being. That poor woman and her baby. :(

Unknown said...

The guy is a grade A dirty douche bag. However, the female isn't too bright either. He told her that he didn't want her to have his baby and she refused to have an abortion, but she continued to have sex with him? Stupid female.

I have a simple rule, if the man says he doesn't want a baby, believe him and don't do it. The number 1 killer of pregnant women is MURDER. And, the father is usually the perpetrator.

Ladies wake the hell up. You have the right to do what you want with your body. However, if the man says "no" and you insist on going through with the pregnancy... be very careful, you never know how he will respond.

auntliddy said...

akm1 I always say pro life. huh.

Lioness70 said...

This story reminds me of some douchenozzle I dated a long time ago, who I got bad vibes about and dumped on the second date.

Years later, he made headlines for punching his pregnant wife in the stomach because she refused to have an abortion. She was about as far along as the woman in this story was.

He served time, if I recall.

No doubt he would have done something as shitty as this if he was able to.

You don't want kids? Don't take the chance, asshole. No method of BC is ever 100 percent foolproof.

babo said...

@AKM
You deliberately tried to spin this sad story to land straight into controversy and generalization. Not the right place, not the right time.

PS. I m European so I m all kinds of atheist evils with bad teeth and loose morals, but the social workers I know tend to be very, very open-minded and, if they re not, very low key about sharing their personal views on societal issues. I just found it surprising. It s a job that requires empathy and objectivity.

ablake said...

She wanted the baby.
He killed the baby growing inside of her.

Yeah, he's a murderer and I hope this case makes the books.

CanadianMiss said...

I'm not going to get into the whole pro-life/pro-choice, but the fact is, he did something to this woman's body without her knowledge and consent. At the very least he caused emotional harm, he quite possibly could have damaged her reproductive system and, theoretically, could have caused her death. He deserves to be charged.

AKM said...

auntliddy, I actually wrote the wrong thing. I actually mean "anti-choice." Whatever anyone would like to label me is fine...pro-life, anti-abortion, anti-choice, whatever. I reserve the right to do the same, though.

babo, why do you get to decide the time and place? Are you a moderator here? No, I didn't think so. You also don't know me, so just because I am pro-life doesn't mean that I'm not open-minded; the two are not mutually exclusive. Actually, assuming that kind of makes you the one who is close-minded, doesn't it? Also, I have a great deal of empathy for EVERYONE, and that includes unborn children.

FWIW, social workers here in the States have all kinds of views, and some are quiet about it and some aren't. I don't understand why you should be surprised that we're not all a certain way or that we all don't ascribe to only one political view. Liberals aren't the only ones who can have a valid viewpoint and express it.

For the record, I'm agnostic. I'm not sure why that should matter, and I never said one word about anyone's religion or lack thereof.

I've tried to be respectful to everyone here, and most have been the same way, and I thank you. There's no reason we can't debate here and do it respectfully.

Those who were rude, though? That says more about you than it does about me.

feraltart said...

While I am pro-choice, I do think it is legitimate to address the fact that there are two people who make a baby. The only reason I think a woman should have more say in the matter is because pregnancy cannot be hidden and can affect a woman's career, physical and mental health and social ties. One of my friends, who was married, decided she wanted to have children so 'accidentally' got herself pregnant. Her husband did want them, but wanted to wait. I do not condone her actions. I also would like to see a reduction in the number of abortions. As someone wrote above, multiple abortions reflect on the woman. On the flip side, I know of two women who found themselves in situations where an abortion was the choice - birth control had failed. One ended up in counselling. I believe the vast majority of women do not undertake abortion lightly. Having written all of that, what this guy did could have killed his girlfriend and I hope she gets to have a child in the future.

dia papaya said...

Well said Sarah! I'm so sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing.

babo said...

A gossip site: not the place
A thread about a crime like this: not the time.

AKM said...

Well, we will have to agree to disagree. The story was posted, and we all expressed our opinions. That happens here, on this very gossip site, every day. It's not all Oscar dresses and who's-screwing-whom here all the time. Heavier topics here actually used to bother me, too, but now I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing when done calmly, intelligently, and without name-calling. That's what I tried to do, anyway.

A heinous thing happened to that woman. It's absolutely horrific. We ALL agree on that. I just also think that the slaughter of unborn babies daily is just as heinous. Many here disagree, and like I said, that's fine. I'm not going to belittle them or their views, and I'm not out to convert, either. But I can sure as hell express my opinions just as much as the next person. Until there's a moderator here who tells me I can't, I will continue to do so, just as everyone else can.

Now can we please drop it?

Anonymous said...

Sooooo, Sex should happen between two consenting adults, , but not parenthood?

Anonymous said...

Sunny, I have serious reservations about the maturity and IQ levels of the three women you mentioned. Six and 8 abortions? That is horrendous! These women are obviously using abortion as birth control. NO ONE can have that many legit birth control failures. Personally, I am pro-life except in very limited and specific cases. I am also very pro-sex education and pro-free birth control. To read that you know three women who have each had that many abortions makes me sick.

Henriette said...

@Sunny
Six and eight abortions is CRAZY! That's using abortion as a form of birth control. I knew a woman that I worked with who had FOUR, and I thought she was nuts. When women start using abortion (a surgery) as a form to prevent pregnancy, that's when I wonder if pro-choice is the way to go. I agree with Texshan.

He went this route so he wouldn't have to be saddled with child support.

Chole said...

Sarah, sorry for your loss as well. Cannot even begin to imagine what that is like. I agree with you on this. Let's all put aside our opinions on abortion for a moment, and think of the attempted murder charge that, I'm assuming deals with the woman. First of all, he had to obtain the drug illegally. I would think that if a woman gets the drug from a doctor, an appropriate dose is given, along with precautions and warnings of what to expect. I don't know how this drug works, but I'm sure something that can cause an abortion that way, easily could have seriously harmed her, and maybe cause her to bleed out. If he had shoved her down the stairs with this intent, that would prob be considered attempted murder too.

Chole said...

I agree...I hadn't scrolled down far enough to see your comment :p The harm done to her body was my point as well.

dia papaya said...

Sunny, oh my! Those poor women. But I know a few who've been in that situation.

One of them was a very smart woman (educated at Yale and Boston Univ). She was an attorney and for whatever reason, just didn't use birth control. She was also into drugs for awhile (it was the 80s people). She told me her first abortion was at Yale and the school paid for all of it. In the health center!!! Covered!!!

She has a girl now. I think a lot of it was low self esteem and the lure of the dangerous man. She's much better now.

I learned it's best not to judge bc you never know what is going on. When I studied in China in the women's health clinic, every woman we saw had at least one abortion. Many had 5, 6, 8, etc. It was heart breaking, but that's the law there. We all have our issues, ya know...

Susan said...

Sunny: I'm REALLY bad at hypotheticals, but imagining that many abortions being a part of my life. OMG. I just can't wrap my brain around it. I just know if I had to make that decision to have 1 abortion it would be SO DEVASTATING to my whole being.

This story is horrifying. I'm off to find a post about dresses and who is shagging who...

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