The woman wanted to continue the pregnancy and delivered a stillborn baby after being given medication without her consent, investigators say.

THE WOODLANDS, Texas — A 25-year-old Spring man has been charged after investigators said he secretly gave abortion medication to the mother of his unborn child, who had said she wanted to keep the baby, and the child was later delivered stillborn at a hospital in The Woodlands.

Authorities say the case quickly became more than a hospital call. Detectives in Montgomery County are treating it as a violent family case involving the death of an unborn child, and prosecutors have said the current felony charge could be changed or increased as evidence work continues. The accusation has drawn attention because investigators say the woman refused repeated efforts to persuade her to end the pregnancy, then told deputies she believed the father had acted without her knowledge.

According to investigators, deputies were sent to a hospital in The Woodlands on Feb. 21 after a report of a miscarriage under suspicious circumstances. The woman told deputies she believed the father of her baby had secretly administered a drug to end the pregnancy. By her account, the pregnancy had been wanted by her, not by him. The child, whom the mother named Presley Mae, was stillborn at the hospital. Detectives from the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit, crime scene investigators and prosecutors began working the case that day. Sheriff Wesley Doolittle later said the office’s detectives, patrol deputies and prosecutors handled a “difficult and sensitive case,” and he offered sympathy to the mother and her family as they mourned the loss.

Investigators identified the suspect as Jon Rueben Gabriel Demeter, 25, of Spring. They said the inquiry showed Demeter had tried on multiple occasions to persuade the woman to get an abortion and even offered to pay for her to travel out of Texas for one. Authorities say she repeatedly refused and made clear that she intended to carry the pregnancy to term. Investigators then concluded that Demeter obtained abortion medication and covertly administered it to her without her knowledge or consent. Houston television station ABC13 reported the medication was mifepristone. Officials have not publicly explained how they believe the drug was given, what testing was completed, or whether toxicology and medical examiner findings had been finalized when the charge was announced. Those details remain unclear in public accounts.

The case sits at the intersection of a criminal investigation, a pregnancy loss and Texas abortion law, but the allegation described by investigators is narrower than the broader political fight over abortion. Authorities are not accusing the woman of wrongdoing. Instead, they say the issue is that medication was allegedly given to her secretly and against her will. The public timeline so far shows a rapid response: deputies were called on Feb. 21, the investigation widened immediately, and Demeter was arrested two days later, on Feb. 23. Officials have also said the Montgomery County Medical Examiner’s Office assisted during the investigation. Local reports described the woman’s account as the starting point for the inquiry, followed by evidence collection and consultation with the district attorney’s office.

Demeter was booked on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing serious bodily injury, family violence. He was being held without bond in the Montgomery County Jail after his arrest, and local television reports said a bond review hearing was scheduled for the following Wednesday morning. Prosecutors have said the investigation is ongoing and that the charge could potentially be upgraded. Authorities have not publicly laid out what additional counts they might seek, and no public filing described here resolves the facts of the case. The next steps are expected to include continued evidence processing, review by prosecutors and further court proceedings as the county decides whether to stay with the current assault charge or pursue something more severe.

The public record has also included comments from the defendant’s mother, who said he turned himself in and argued that more facts would come out in court. Cookie Demeter declined to address the specific allegation in detail but said, “You don’t know the other side of the story,” adding that “only God knows.” She also said her son has two other young children, ages 3 and 15 months, and that she had only recently learned of the pregnancy. Those remarks did not answer the central accusation laid out by investigators, but they signaled the family’s intent to contest the public narrative as the case moves forward. For now, the sheriff’s account and the charging decision remain the clearest official description of what prosecutors say happened.

The case remained open as of March 23, 2026, with Demeter jailed and prosecutors still reviewing evidence. The next milestone is expected to come through court hearings or any updated charging decision filed by Montgomery County authorities.

Author note: Last updated March 23, 2026.