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A new bill passed in Utah claims that a woman “guilty” of having a miscarriage might soon be considered a lawbreaker. And as I said this is a new bill, a new potential law, not one of those odd, for some reason still-in-existence bill from six decades ago. Lawmakers in Utah also state that a woman who has an induced abortion will be guilty of crime as well.
The bill is supposedly designed to protect pregnant woman and claims that any woman found to have undergone an induced abortion, or, on the opposite end of the spectrum, an “accidental” miscarriage, would be considered punishable by law. A recent case triggered the pre-approval of such bill; a pregnant seventeen year-old girl allegedly paid a man one-hundred fifty dollars to beat her so that she would suffer the effects of a “miscarriage.”
Missy Bird, director of Planned Parenthood in Utah, states that she fears that a lot of women suffering addiction or effects of substance abuse will take their problems and run. Why would a woman want to be held legally liable for a miscarriage if they have a substance abuse problem that’s out of control? Bird also states:
“This creates a law that makes any pregnant woman who has a miscarriage potentially criminally liable for murder.”
Although many states have a bill or law in place stating that third-trimester abortions are considered fetal homicide, this particular bill would stay in effect from day one of the woman’s pregnancy. The only life-saving clause that comes along with the bill is the apparent respite from imprisonment if the pregnant woman should fail to follow prescribed medical advice such as accepting or declining a Cesarean section, having anesthesia administered for a procedure during childbirth or other related medical caveats.
The bill is steeping in its own shit at this point and the only thing between that and a legal penalty for having a miscarriage? The governor’s signature.
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That’s ridiculous. Miscarriages just HAPPEN sometimes, and it’s nobody’s fault.
My boss has had several miscarriages, and each and every one broke her heart. To charge her as a criminal for them would be madness.
I don’t think it is women like your boss who are being targeted with this law. More so women who intentionally cause themselves to have miscarriages- like in that Law and Order episode where the 16 year girl has her boyfriend punch her belly until she miscarries.
However, should this law pass, it would likely be pretty easy for most women who were charged with such a thing to argue their miscarriage was unintentional.
After all, how would the Crown prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it wasn’t an accident? There would have to be some pretty solid evidence to the contrary.
Here is another link on this. According to this article, this bill has officially been passed.
http://community.feministing.com/2010/02/in-utah-miscarriage-criminal-h.html
And it is all miscarriages that are targeted, because women will now have to PROVE that the miscarriage was out of their control.
Bull-fucking-shit.
My exact sentiment before I even saw your comment.
It’s the fucking mormons running the politics of that state- what do you expect?! They want all the “spirit babies” to be born… but seriously. I just moved from that state and mormons are nice people and all but it’s some crazy shit they believe in! Pretty nasty history too…
We got tons of Mormons in AZ also!
I live in AZ now, haha! I had a room-mate (when I was in the AF stationed in Idaho) who was mormon and she was from Mesa. The crazy fundamentalists are up north aren’t they? So far the only door knockers to my house have been Jehova’s witnesses. I love their end of days pamphlets- watchtower I think it’s called? I’m pregnant and I have a little toddler, do I want to buy into the idea that they will not have a future?! Um, no thanks. 2012 can suck it too.
I find it most entertaining that the world was *supposed* to end many many years ago. The date came up, and the world didn’t end, so they moved it. The date was moved forward a few times before they realized they kept failing, and stuck with the vague ’soon’ instead of pegging dates.
Not only that, I think Mormons can be really sexually repressed too. The ones I’ve known have been, at least. Sexually repressed with small but intense explosions of Mormon-appropriate horniness, because it’s not possible to bottle it up forever :D
Funny you should mention that! I introduced my old roomate to her first latte (which she thought was sooo bad for her to be drinking)
Yet she managed to show up complete with a porn addiction (she had confessed it and was in counseling with the church) and not soon after screwing the guy that lived a couple doors down and then one of my bf’s friends, she marries her boyfriend (out of guilt I’m sure). Not long after the marriage she winds up prego. Guess what? dates don’t match- she got pregnant the month before her boyfriend got into town. Ooops! Annulment ensues and she gets out of the AF and I’m assuming she went back to Mesa.
She wouldn’t have gotten pregnant if it weren’t looked down upon to use a condom or even birth control. Funny how so many super religious types will forgo the rubber yet go ahead with the pre-marital sex… I guess since God forgives, you can pick and choose which rules to break. I feel bad for her that she was so sheltered…
You know people are bad when Vermont kicks them out….Brigham Young tried to settle in Vermont, he and his followers got kicked out…
[...] Miscarriages Are Going To Be Illegal? – Zelda Lily [...]
I thought you all would enjoy this Mormon blog…
http://www.blogger.com/profile/16115574492913661591
Speaking of Mormons,that HBO special called Big Love is way cool.