Bell discovered she was pregnant in 1988. She went to a Planned Parenthood clinic in Indiana seeking an abortion. There she was told that state law required consent from her parents for the procedure and that most minors in her area traveled to Louisville, approximately 100 miles away, to avoid parental disclosure. She also had the option of going before a judge to argue for a waiver of parental consent, but reportedly feared that her parents would find out. Bell reportedly considered having an abortion in Kentucky, carrying to term and placing the baby for adoption, or running away to California.