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Protect Pregnant Women: Free Bei Bei!


AtroposHeart

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Numerous organizations and leaders who identify themselves as “pro-life†have assured the public that state murder and feticide laws that create special penalties for harming fetuses would not result in the arrests of pregnant women. Terry Curry, the Marion County Prosecutor, however is using these laws as the basis for arresting pregnant women who take any intentional action that could harm the fertilized eggs, embryos, or fetuses inside of them.

In 2010, Bei Bei Shuai, a pregnant woman living in Indiana became so depressed that she attempted to end her own life. With help from friends who intervened, however, she survived. Although Ms. Shuai did everything she could, including undergoing cesarean surgery, to ensure that her baby survived, her newborn died shortly after birth.

Ms. Shuai was arrested for the crime of murder (defined to include viable fetuses) and feticide (defined to include ending a human pregnancy at any stage). The sentence for murder can be the death penalty or 45 years-to-life. The sentence for attempted feticide is up to 20 years. Both of these kinds of laws are promoted and supported by “pro-life†organizations.

Father Frank Pavone of Priests for Life has said that the “pro-life movement is not out to punish women.†Yet, as of March 14th Ms. Shuai, will have been imprisoned and punished for an entire year. (Bail is not allowed when the charge is murder).

Indiana’s murder and feticide statutes were passed in response to violent attacks on pregnant women and with the promise that they would be used to protect pregnant women and the fetuses they carry from such assaults. Instead, in a blatant bait and switch maneuver these laws are being used to lock-up pregnant women.

If this prosecution is allowed to go forward, the law will not just apply to one desperate pregnant woman who attempted suicide -- it will:

• Create legal precedent that makes every woman criminally liable for the outcome of her pregnancy.

• Empower police officers to decide which of the twenty to thirty percent of pregnant women who suffer miscarriage and stillbirths each year will be subjected to bedside interrogations, arrests, prosecutions, and imprisonment.

• Leave no doubt that women who intentionally end their pregnancies may be charged with murder if Roe is ever overturned.

By continuing this prosecution, Mr. Curry is making clear that the “Pro-Life†position is really the “Pro Life-Sentences-For-Pregnant-Women†position. Please join this petition to the Marion County Prosecutor to drop all charges and to free Bei Bei Shuai now.

http://www.change.org/petitions/protect-pregnant-women-free-bei-bei?utm_medium=facebook&utm_source=share_petition&utm_term=autopublish

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Yet, my gop lovin relatives yammer, "its not a slippery slope".

Fucking terrified, that'd be me!

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Yes, I remember this case of poor Ms Shuai. After being dumped and already depressed she tried to kill herself with rat poison. She was ill and not thinking straight, and then she lost what was by all accounts a wanted baby.

I remember how desperately sorry for her I felt and I cannot believe she's still in the jail. I am going to get the word out to as many people as I can about this.

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This is awful. I suffered badly with depression while pregnant, although I only realised in retrospect how bad it had been. I hear a lot about post-natal depression but little about depression while pregnant. I tried to explain it to my midwife but she was very brisk and just waved it away as 'par for the course'. This is the main reason I decided to stop at two children - I couldn't bear to go through it again. Women in this situation need help, counselling, drugs if appropriate - not being locked up.

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There's a publication, I think by the ACLU, that describes the many cases in which these fetal protection laws have been used against pregnant women. I wish I had found it when they tried to pass a fetal homicide law here awhile back.

ETA I think this is it: http://www.aclu.org/reproductive-freedo ... -pregnancy

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I wonder if there is a way to write laws in such a way that if you wanted to have a law that adds extra punishment for attacking a pregnant woman but not have these same trappings. Maybe make it a property crime? I mean, if I break my own car window to get in my car because I locked my keys in, or if I give someone permission to break the window, then there is nothing illegal about it.

I am not in support of these laws in general, it's more of a thought exercise for me if it is POSSIBLE.

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I wonder if there is a way to write laws in such a way that if you wanted to have a law that adds extra punishment for attacking a pregnant woman but not have these same trappings. Maybe make it a property crime? I mean, if I break my own car window to get in my car because I locked my keys in, or if I give someone permission to break the window, then there is nothing illegal about it.

I am not in support of these laws in general, it's more of a thought exercise for me if it is POSSIBLE.

I don't know what is so damn hard to understand about the concept of choice. Doing something that causes a woman to miscarry is no better forbidding her to have an abortion if she wants to. It doesn't have to be a property crime at all and is absolutely assault on the woman. It's impossible to cause a miscarriage (or attempt to) without assaulting the pregnant woman. And forced or coerced abortion (which would be based on intent of the criminal) can be its own crime without deferring to property rights.

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During my doula training, we had a session on honoring the womens' choices regarding when, where, how and even if they will birth. It might surprise you to know that we watched several interviews with staunchly prolife people who march in prochoice rallies because they were on the recieving end of government intervantion in their births. On that stands out in particular is a woman arrived at the hospital, she was in labor (obviously) and the on call OB wanted to do a C-section. It was not ehr regular OB who was out of town or something. Anyway, she refused because the labor seemed to be progressing normally for how her labors go. So she left the hospital and drove to one about half an hour away where she birthed a healthy baby vaginally with no tears or anything. In the meantime hospital number one had gotten a court order and the sherif arrived at her birthing suite to arrest her for child endangerment and the the baby was taken into "protective" custody. Eventually she won her baby back but it took months to wind through the court systems. All the time, the first hospital, social workers etc.. just ignored the fact that she did make a good medical decision that had a great outcome health outcome for the baby. Hospital two helped come to the woman's defense. Anyway, now this woman says while she believe abortion is wrong, she must march with people who are prochoice because women must be free to care for themselves and their children without fear of state intervention. I had kind of forgotten about it until I read through the ACLU link. I'm pretty sure this case was in the early 2000s.

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Wow! I didn't realize Ms. Shuai was still in jail! AtroposHeart, thanks for initiating the thread and bringing awareness. I have signed and shared the petition on my facebook and twitter. I hope others do the same. :)

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I didn't realize she was still in jail, but I do remember hearing about her case. This is why we women need to exercise our right to vote this election, or some extremists might just take that away along with our reproductive rights.

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I wonder if there is a way to write laws in such a way that if you wanted to have a law that adds extra punishment for attacking a pregnant woman but not have these same trappings. Maybe make it a property crime? I mean, if I break my own car window to get in my car because I locked my keys in, or if I give someone permission to break the window, then there is nothing illegal about it.

I am not in support of these laws in general, it's more of a thought exercise for me if it is POSSIBLE.

In Canada, it's prosecuted under general assault laws. Legally, you can't be charged with assaulting yourself. However, if a woman is assaulted by a partner and the fetus is harmed or killed, it would be bumped up to assault causing bodily harm or aggrevated assault.

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I signed.

I wonder what was happening before the suicide attempt.

Did she lack support?

Were any doctors aware of her depression?

Was there a reluctance to prescribe antidepressants for a pregnant woman?

If so, this is a double punishment. Create the situation that pushes a woman to the brink of suicide, and then punish her again for the consequences of her illness.

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In Canada, it's prosecuted under general assault laws. Legally, you can't be charged with assaulting yourself. However, if a woman is assaulted by a partner and the fetus is harmed or killed, it would be bumped up to assault causing bodily harm or aggrevated assault.

Why can't we have that here? Oh wait... we're the united states and we've taken complete leave of our senses!!!

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