NC Voters Think Laurean Should Be Charged With 2 Murders

NC Voters Think Laurean Should Be Charged With 2 Murders
Unborn Victims Should Bring Separate Murder Charge

Raleigh, N.C. – As North Carolina awaits extradition of suspected murderer Ceasar Laurean from Mexico, voters back home feel the circumstances of his crime should yield two murder charges, not the sole charge he will face under current North Carolina criminal law.
 
The Civitas Institute’s April DecisionMaker poll reveals that 82 percent of North Carolina voters agree that if a woman is murdered while carrying a viable fetus, the perpetrator should receive two murder charges.  Twelve percent believe there should only be one murder charge.  Seven percent were unsure.

“North Carolina is one of only 14 states that do not charge a suspect with a separate murder when a viable fetus is killed along with the mother.  With the high-profile murders of Jenna Nielsen, LCpl Maria Lauterbach USMC and their respective unborn children, North Carolina voters want their killers charged with two murders,” stated Francis DeLuca, Executive Director of the Civitas Institute.

Legislation was introduced in 2007 to amend North Carolina criminal law to provide for a separate murder charge for unborn victims.  HB 263, the “Unborn Victims of Violence Act” is sponsored by Rep. Trudi Walend (R-Henderson) and Rep. Dale Folwell (R-Forsyth).  It is currently pending before the House Judiciary I Committee. 

The study of 800 registered voters was conducted April 9-10 by TelOpinion Research of Alexandria, Virginia. All respondents were part of a fully representative sample of registered voters in North Carolina. For purposes of this study, voters we interviewed had to have voted in either the 2002, 2004 or 2006 general election or were newly registered voters since 2006. The voters were interviewed using live callers.

The confidence interval associated with a sample of this size is such that: 95% of the time, results from 800 interviews (registered voters) will be within +-3.7% of the “True Values.”  “True Values” refer to the results obtained if were possible to interview every person in North Carolina who had voted in either the 2002, 2004 or 2006 general elections or were newly registered voters since 2006.