Bill Being Debated That Would Define Abortion After Rape As "Tampering With Evidence"

A GOP state rep in New Mexico is pushing to have getting an abortion after rape declared a third-degree felony; you can get the blow-by-blow account courtesy of HuffPo.

Here's a Reader's Digest condensed version:

Quote :

A Republican lawmaker in New Mexico introduced a bill on Wednesday that would legally require victims of rape to carry their pregnancies to term in order to use the fetus as evidence for a sexual assault trial.

House Bill 206, introduced by state Rep. Cathrynn Brown (R), would charge a rape victim who ended her pregnancy with a third-degree felony for "tampering with evidence."

“Tampering with evidence shall include procuring or facilitating an abortion, or compelling or coercing another to obtain an abortion, of a fetus that is the result of criminal sexual penetration or incest with the intent to destroy evidence of the crime," the bill says.

Third-degree felonies in New Mexico carry a sentence of up to three years in prison.

Yeah, you read that right. Rep. Brown wants to put women in jail for being reluctant to bear the offspring of a rapist.

Calling this legislation "insane" would barely even scratch the surface.

YEAH YOU COULD STILL USE THE FOETUS AS EVIDENCE YOU DUMB ASSWHOLE

GOOGLE "X CASE"

seriously if you ever wanted proof that "pro-lifers" just want to punish women for sluttiness HERE IT IS


edit:

Quote :

UPDATE: 12:25 p.m. -- Brown said in a statement Thursday that she introduced the bill with the goal of punishing the person who commits incest or rape and then procures or facilitates an abortion to destroy the evidence of the crime.

Well clearly you didn't word it well enough Representative Brown

nor did you imagine the logical fucking result of it

Quote :

“New Mexico needs to strengthen its laws to deter sex offenders,” said Brown. “By adding this law in New Mexico, we can help to protect women across our state.”

Making it more difficult for rapists to be convicted = deterring sex offenders. Oh yeah, I can tell a lot of careful thought and sound logic went into making this bill.

Quote :

A Republican lawmaker in New Mexico introduced a bill on Wednesday that would legally require victims of rape to carry their pregnancies to term in order to use the fetus as evidence for a sexual assault trial.

Additional unfortunate implication: If a rape victim carries the pregnancy to term, then the child is legally considered "evidence." Think about it: the baby is starting life out not as an ordinary citizen, but as criminal evidence. How would you like to start life that way?

Slippery slope: If a woman pregnant by a rapist miscarries, has she committed a crime? If she gets the morning-after pill to prevent pregnancy, is she also tampering with evidence? What if she just doesn't conceive? Is she tampering with evidence when she has her period? What if the victim is incapable of conceiving (male, female who is pre-pubescent, post-menopausal, post-hysterectomy, pregnant)?

This sounds like a way to keep women from reporting rape.

That's exactly what it is. Just that nobody's stupid enough to actually admit that's what they're trying to do.

Forcing a woman to get an abortion (either to cover up a rape or otherwise) is illegal anyways, yeah?

Reepicheep-chan wrote:

Forcing a woman to get an abortion (either to cover up a rape or otherwise) is illegal anyways, yeah?

Yep. I had a student a few years ago whose mom and stepdad tried to force her to get an abortion, only to be told in no uncertain terms by Planned Parenthood that it was the pregnant woman's choice only, and no one else's, no matter what her age.

There are so many things wrong with this bill that we could make a thread just by playing the game "Name one way this bill will backfire".

Some women will carry a rape-baby to term, regardless. But a lot of women won't. And if they can't abort this baby, they'll try and force a misscarriage with clever things like coathangers and coca-cola, which isn't always successfl and can damage a woman's fertility anyway.

Plus they'll be more reluctant to report that the baby is a rape baby if they don't want to carry it.

Plus of course, there's dozens of ways to find out whose baby it is, without the baby even being born.