Moms Vent: Georgia Bill that Criminalizes Miscarriages

As a woman and mother who has suffered a miscarriage, I am outraged to learn that Georgia State Rep. Bobby Franklin (R-Marietta) has presented the legislature with the bill HB 1: "Prenatal murder" which makes it a crime for the female human body to end a pregnancy, if an investigation team cannot determine a cause for the pregnancy termination.

In other words, if you suffer a miscarriage and can't "prove" what the cause was (which is usually the case!), then you can be prosecuted for murder.

See the pdf file attached to this article to read Franklin's complete bill.

The bill further states that any time a miscarriage occurs, whether in a hospital or without medical assistance, it must be reported and a fetal death certificate issued. If the cause of death is unknown, it must be investigated. If the woman can't tell how it happened, the police can question family members, friends, co-workers, and acquaintances how it happened. Oh, and no exceptions - not even for rape or incest victims! And not to save the life and health of the mother.

I once read that one in three pregnancies results in miscarriage. I miscarried once. I grieved for months. I blamed myself, wondering if I did something wrong to cause it. Women have enough to cope with after a miscarriage, and a police or government criminal investigation should not be part of it.

I'd like to know how other women and parents feel about a bill that would treat every woman as a potential criminal when faced with the devastating loss caused by a miscarriage.

Ann H.

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Click here for Bobby Franklin's Georgia House of Representatives contact information page.

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