Mother won’t be charged with baby’s death because of law loophole
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Mother won't be charged with baby's death because...
Campbell Co. investigators say the umbilical cord and placenta were still attached, so the law does not consider the baby a separate lifeA loophole in state law is preventing Campbell County investigators from charging a woman they say killed her newborn baby.
Deputies were called to a home in the 1200 block of Lone Jack Road in Rustburg around 11:00a.m. Friday. The caller said a woman in her early 20s was in labor. When deputies arrived, they discovered the baby had actually been born around 1:00a.m., about ten hours earlier. Investigators say the baby was already dead when deputies got there.
Investigators tell WSLS the baby’s airway was still blocked. They say the baby was under bedding and had been suffocated by her mother. Investigators say because the mother and baby were still connected by the umbilical cord and placenta, state law does not consider the baby to be a separate life. Therefore, the mother cannot be charged.
“In the state of Virginia as long as the umbilical cord is attached and the placenta is still in the mother, if the baby comes out alive the mother can do whatever she wants to with that baby to kill it.“, says Investigator Tracy Emerson. “She could shoot the baby, stab the baby. As long as it’s still attached to her in some form by umbilical cord or something it’s no crime in the state of Virginia.“
The Campbell County Sheriff’s Office and Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office worked unsuccessfully to get the law changed after another baby died in the county in a similar case. Emerson says they asked two delegates and one state senator to take the issue up in the General Assembly. He says the three lawmakers refused because they felt the issue was too close to the abortion issue.
Emerson tells us there’s a double standard with the law. If someone other than the mother harms a baby still attached to the mother, that person can be charged.
The baby’s grandmother was home and was the one who called 911. Police say she will not be charged because the baby was born in the middle of the night and the grandmother did not know until late morning. Investigators tell us the baby’s father was upset when he showed up at the home after deputies.
“He was very upset. I think the grandparents were upset. I believe everyone was upset, except for the person who should have been upset, the mother.“, says Emerson.
Emerson tells us the woman knew she was pregnant and had received prenatal care. He says the baby was full-term, due Tuesday. The medical examiner says the baby was born healthy. An autopsy is being performed. The baby’s body will then be released to the family.
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Reader Reactions
I think the attorney for Campbell County has misinterpreted this law. Here’s a link to the Code of Virginia citation related to this “crime”.
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+coh+18.2-71.1+701988
The operative word is “intent”...that is for a judge to decide.
What an incredibly sad and sickening story. We have brought this upon ourselves in the name of ‘Rights’. We should not be surprised; this horrid reality is of our own making and is the logical outcome of the practice of abortion. God, our Creator said ‘Don’t murder’ but we, His creation have said ‘we’ll do as we please.‘ Under the guise of ‘reproductive rights’ we have turned into a nation of murderers and a people whose very soul has been numbed to it all. We have heard the saying, ‘you will reap what you sow’. But that is not the whole of the saying. The whole of it is found in the Bible: “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.“ Galatians 6:7 And just as it is TRUE that we are reaping what we have sown, it is also just as TRUE that we have deceived ourselves into thinking that God will not judge us for it. He will. God must judge because He is holy and sinless and just. We are made in His image which means that we too desire justice. We expect this woman to be punished in a way that would satisfy justice, do we not? How much more God then. We have sinned against (disobeyed) God by saying ‘we’ll do it our way’ whether it be murder or lying and so our fellowship with Him has been broken. But God desires that we be reconciled to Him; that’s why He sent God the Son, whose birthday we celebrate in 4 days. Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, makes a way back to fellowship with God through the forgiveness of sin. ‘Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world’. This season, as with every day of the year, the gift of reconciliation with our Creator is available to whosoever will receive the gift of eternal life through Christ the Lord. Start by reading the Gospel of John in the Bible. Merry Christmas.
Why didn’t the reporter pursue the names of the 2 delegates and 1 state senator. I think that would be a justified question and answers the readers and listeners would like to know. Is WSLS as afraid of the abortion industry and the “right to choose murder” as the politicians and sheriff?
I had to keep my comments separate for I see many sides to this story. I think the law absolutely needs to be changed. She will definately need counseling and I think it should be forsed counseling time. She should not be able to slide and be able to get pregnant in 3 months if it is convient for her. I think the systom failed her by not having her in therapy with part of the prenatal care. That way any issues would have been caught before hand and thus her care failed her. In a time where Dr.s spend 10 to 15 minutes with the patient there isnt any care anymore. This issue may have been avoided all together. Also if other options were totally gone through at those times she might have chosen to give up the child for adoption.
I am definately for life but under-stand mental illnesses. I know dogs that sense something wrong with a pup will kill it or the whole litter and sometimes the Vet does know why until following litters. Also it sounds like she was young and well intentioned having prenatal care but maybe someone whom she couldnt say no to (Who used to beat her or rape her for example) pressured her to keep the child beyond abortion dates and wouldnt let her give the child up for adoption. Maybe this was the unhealthy environment the baby was being born into and the mother felt that death was less cruel. Like I said not my way of handling it but maybe she didnt have any other options. I know of a friend who got her 9 mth old niece from Social Services and the 6 YEAR OLD BECAUSE THE 6 year old called because the intestines started to come out of her sister do to probable rape of the 9 mth old. Maybe this lady had someone who would have access to the baby who did this too and the family wouldnt believe her. You never know.
I believe that the media is at fault for a lot of these type of issues, what do I mean, well let see the media post stories like this one which educates the viewer and then the crime or event is commited by more and more. The media should practice better judgement on their stories or at least the content that they are going to mention. Shame on you!!
Under Federal Law 107-207 an infant’s cord does not have to be cut. Refer the case to federal authorities.
JustWondering, I posted three times now that Cambpell County got it wrong. There is already a law in VA State Code that makes it illegal for what happened. Why Campbell County refuses to look at the code section is beyond me. You have it right. She should hve been charged under 18.2-71.1 - Most all these posts on here are arguing that the law should be changed, No it doesn’t! Just the proper code section needs to be inforced. Just use the code section that fits the crime. That Cambpell County Investigator should be fired. Read your code book mister investigator!
Does anyone know the VA law- by it’s name- that has such a loophole as mentioned in the video?
The one I’ve found:
Code of Virginia 18.2-71.1, paragraph C
does NOT seem to support what I heard in the video.
I cannot believe that the state is letting her get away with this!!!! They put Michael Vick in jail for fighting and killing dogs, and if you shoot a deer out of hunting season you get charges! But it’s OK to kill an innocent baby as long as it is still attached!!!! What the **** is our state thinking! Now every pregnant woman who doesn’t want her baby and decides to kill it is going to visit Virginia!!! I mean hadn’t this woman heard of Safe Haven???? What made her think she could play GOD and end someone’s life, especially a babys! There are sooo many couples out there trying unsuccessfully to conceive a child and give it a happy and caring home and people go and do things like this and our state says, oh well its no big deal!!!!! I’m infuriated by this!!!! We as citizens NEED to do something!!!!! If a petition is started PLEASE find me! I will sign it! I will write our state legislature! I bet if they were overloaded with letters from people who were genuinely upset by this something would change!!!!
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