NC: Bill could protect unborn children
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Bill could protect unborn children
2/25/2007 1:18:56 PM
By: Jennifer Moxley
SALISBURY, N.C. -- A lawmaker from Rowan County wants there to be consequences when someone commits a crime that kills an unborn child.
The issue hits close to home for state representative Fred Steen. He is from Landis, N.C., the same town where an accused drunken driver hit and killed a 20-year-old pregnant woman earlier this month.
The wreck was a double tragedy for Leeanna Newman's family. It killed the 20 year old as well as the unborn child she had carried for eight months. According to the law, if the child, Bianca Cheyenne, had not taken one breath of life on her own, criminal charges can't be filed for her death... and that's had people talking.
“I really do think people should be charged. If the girl was in the wreck and she was pregnant, and she was 8 months pregnant, I mean, that's only one month away, that baby could have been born,” said Laurabeth Mull.
State representative Fred Steen is sponsoring a bill that would allow charges to be filed for the death of a fetus when a crime is committed.
“I think people are waking up and saying we need to make a change here. This is something that we need to protect the unborn child which is the innocent victim of this crime,” said Steen.
Rigo Martinez is charged with second-degree murder for the death of Leeanna Newman, but won't be charged for the baby's death unless medical records prove the baby lived, even for just a moment, on her own.
Not every state has a law protecting unborn fetuses, and in the states that do have laws, the laws vary. In Oklahoma, the law protects the fetus after six months of gestation. In Arkansas, the law applies after three months of gestation. And in California, the law protects unborn fetuses after just seven weeks of gestation.
“My opinion and a lot of my constituents' opinion is if California can have this type of law, we need to have it in North Carolina as well,” Steen said.
He also said this tragedy in Landis is just one example of why the law should be in place..
The Landis wreck has also fueled discussion about immigration reform.
Rigo Martinez had been arrested in Rowan County under at least six different aliases, had served time in North Carolina’s prison system and had been deported to mexico twice before.
Law enforcement officers say Martinez’s case proves deportation after criminal conviction can only work if the borders are secure.
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