Sean Patrick Maloney: “I really rise in strong opposition to this bill and in support of the Lofgren amendment. In a country in which up to…”

“I really rise in strong opposition to this bill and in support of the Lofgren amendment. In a country in which up to two-thirds of battered women are turned away from shelters for lack of space, in no way does this bill combat domestic violence. But no one should be naive enough to think that this bill has anything to do with domestic violence. Instead, this is another step down the slippery slope toward granting personage to fetuses. This sets up an untenable situation in which a fetus' rights and interests are at odds with its mother. To make the fetus a person would inject a layer of legal complexibility that would make every pregnant woman's ordinary decisions perilous, opening her medical and other choices to second- guessing liability or even criminal charges. This bill criminalizes actions that can occur at the very earliest phases of pregnancy, making every miscarriage subject to an investigation. Roughly 20 to 25 percent of all pregnancies end in miscarriage. Usually there is a genetic reason, but sometimes there is another cause. Studies show that miscarriages can occur because of excessive coffee drinking, smoking, exposure to chemicals, illness, stress or trauma during an accident. Since culpability accrues whether the perpetrator knows the woman is pregnant or not, a wide variety of relatively innocent actions could lead to charges.”