question

[kimihope]

Why is it that if a pregnant woman is killed, the person who killed her is charged with double homicide when abortion is legal?  Anyone?  Please give me a good, valid reason because, to me, this makes no sense.  I'm not trying to start shit or anything, but I would really like to know why this is.  Ok, thanks.

Comments

[fullyloadedyugo]

I remember Justin talking about this and IIRC, people felt that the idea was to get that passed to help support the case for outlawing abortion. No references, just a vague memory (I'd get you some, but the internet here is horrible)

[spiderwillx]

I'd say it's because there's a lack of consistency in regard to what constitutes a "life" in the eyes of the law.

[wordmistress]

Kim,
The way the law reads actually is that if the fetus is passed a certain age, the murderer is charged with two counts. It varies state to state based on abortion laws, but if abortion is only legal in the first trimester, then any pregnant woman who is murdered in her second trimester, that constitutes 2 lives because the state has defined a life at 13 weeks. I'm pretty sure that is federal law and the only changes are the time frame based state to state. In some states, a person can only be charged with assault on the fetus. Ohio is shitty for the way they are trying to railroad abortion.

That was the first time I got to put that knowledge to work...lol.