20 Changes For 2010: Protecting Unborn Victims of Violence

The 14th recommendation in the Civitas Institute Agenda “20 Changes for 2010: A Primer for State Reform” focuses on providing legal protection for unborn victims of violence.

The Problem: When a crime is committed against a pregnant woman, North Carolina does not legally recognize the unborn child’s death or injury as a separate crime.

In 2009, 15 states, including New York, Oregon and neighboring Tennessee introduced measures to protect unborn victims of violence. North Carolina was not one of those states.¹

Solution:

14.) Protect unborn victims of violence by law.

82% of North Carolinians support a fetal homicide law according to an April 2008 poll of likely voters conducted by the Civitas Institute.

North Carolina law should extend specific legal protection to the unborn child of pregnant mothers who choose to carry their child to term. Both the lives of the pregnant woman and the unborn should be explicitly protected by North Carolina law. 

Recommendation:

• Pass a law to establish separate criminal offenses for the death or injury of an unborn child resulting from a violent crime against the pregnant mother.

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