Pregnancy - From natural to medical to criminal: Documenting and challenging current trends to treat pregnancy as criminal justice rather than a public health matter

This presentation will discuss the growing number of criminal cases involving pregnant women continuing to term, the application of civil commitment and punitive child welfare laws to pregnant women and new mothers, the criminal justice implications of outlawing some or all forms of abortion and the arrest of women who have been accused of trying to end their own pregnancies. For example, the following data and issues will be presented:

The results of a comprehensive survey of criminal cases involving the prosecution or pregnancy related crimes from 1977-2005.

The grave implications to all pregnant women, not just those seeking to end their pregnancies will be discussed in light of the recent Supreme Court decision in Gonzalez v. Carhart.

Recent prosecutions of women throughout the country for continuing to term in spite of a health problem and the impact these prosecutions have in deterring women from seeking health care resources that are often not available to them in the first instance. This part of the presentation will highlight a recent case, State v. Martinez, that is currently pending before the New Mexico Supreme Court.

Proposed state and federal legislation that would directly or indirectly create the basis for arresting women who suffer pregnancy loss or who are believed to risk harm to their “unborn” children.

Implications for public health and strategies for reversing this trend will be discussed as well as organizing and recognizing intersectionalities and potential allies both within and beyond the public health sphere.