HOUSTON, TX – A Texas-based attorney, convicted of drugging his wife’s beverages in a bid to cause a miscarriage, has been handed a six-month jail term and a decade-long probation.
The 39-year-old Houston lawyer, Mason Herring, entered a guilty plea on Wednesday for charges of child injury and assaulting an expectant woman. Initially, the charges against him were felony assault aimed at inducing an abortion.
His wife, Catherine Herring, who has initiated divorce proceedings, expressed dissatisfaction with the court’s ruling, arguing the jail term was insufficient. She revealed their third child, a one-year-old girl, was born approximately ten weeks early, is experiencing developmental setbacks, and requires therapy eight times weekly.
“I do not believe that 180 days is justice for attempting to kill your child seven separate times,” Catherine Herring stated.
The office of Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg has yet to comment on the matter. The sentencing of Mason Herring was overseen by state District Judge Andrea Beall.
Catherine Herring informed the authorities that her husband started emphasizing hydration and offering her water in March 2022. She became critically ill after consuming a cloudy drink, which her husband attributed to dirty water pipes or cup.
Becoming suspicious, Catherine Herring declined several other beverages offered by her husband. She later discovered discarded packaging for a drug containing misoprostol, used for inducing abortions, in the trash.
She also handed over to the police footage from hidden cameras installed in her home, showing her husband mixing a substance into one of her drinks.
Mason Herring’s lawyer, Dan Codgell, deemed the plea deal and sentence reasonable, stating, “It’s a sad situation and Mason has accepted his responsibility