Florida Unborn Victims of Violence Act (HB 759)

HB 759 would create a separate criminal offense for death of, or bodily injury to, an “unborn child.”

The bill states that a person who commits a criminal offense or violates the Florida Criminal Code and causes the death of, or bodily injury to, an unborn child commits a separate offense if that offense isn’t specifically provided for.

The bill defines the term “unborn child” to mean “a member of the species homo sapiens, at any stage of development, who is carried in the womb.”

The law would not require that the person engaging in criminal conduct have knowledge that the victim was pregnant or intend to cause the death of, or bodily injury to, the “unborn child.”

STATUS

Companion bill to SB 876, which failed to pass in 2013.

---

People