Massachusetts Fetal Homicide Bill (H 1404)

H 1404 would allow for the prosecution of crimes against fetuses. Under this bill, any individual who engages in conduct that results in the death of, or bodily injury to, a child in utero when the conduct occurs, would be guilty of a separate offense.

Punishment for the separate offense would be treated the same as it would if the resulting injury or death had occurred to the mother.

H 1404 would not require proof that:

• the person engaging in the conduct had knowledge that the victim was pregnant; or
• the defendant intended to cause the death of, or bodily injury to, the victim.

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

 

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