legislative antics in Virginia

[cellio]

It's only the first week of January, and already we have a strong contender for most reprehensible legislation of the year. If this passes, then in the state of Virginia a woman who has a miscarriage will be required to notify government authorities within 12 hours or face a year in jail. Yes, you read that right. (Info from celebrin.)

I am rarely speechless, but I'm having trouble putting my outrage into words right now.

Update Sat 9:30pm: According to the person who posted the news initially, there has been some progress based on the huge outcry (thanks to paquerette for the update). There's still more that needs to be done, but the response from the blogosphere seems to have made a difference. Stay tuned.

Comments

[akitrom.livejournal.com]

Does anybody have any idea what purpose the bill's sponsor thinks needs addressing?

[paquerette.livejournal.com]

According to a reply that someone claims in comments on this blog to have received:

"This bill, which was requested by the Chesapeake Police Department, is an attempt to reduce the number of "trashcan" babies that are born and then abandoned in trashcans, toilets, or elsewhere to die from exposure or worse. There are numerous examples of these tragic deaths in Virginia, many in Northern Virginia and also in Hampton Roads. Once the body of a child is found, if the death of that child is undetermined by a coroner, the person abandoning that child can only be charged with "the improper disposal of a human body".

That is the intent of the bill. I normally do not answer abusive and condescending emails. Please try to ask questions of people as you would have questions asked of you. You know.....kind of like the Golden Rule."

[anniemal.livejournal.com]

and this while they are making it harder to have a legal abortion. They want to make a woman who's miscarried report it within 12 hrs? Given that I was wanted and breach, delivered as such and crippled up Mom for 3wks.,... it's horrible, and no, I don't like living there.

my state shames me, and my options confound me.

[cellio]

This is the part that really angers me. The privacy violation is bad enough on its own, but did they even think about the impact this would have on the woman? Here you are, happily chugging along in your pregnancy (if not happily, then you're already probably under medical care so you won't have to report personally), and then blam, you miscarry out of the blue. It hasn't happened to me, but it's happened to friends and I've seen the emotional trauma it causes. And in the midst of all this, within twelve hours the woman is supposed to make a formal report? Within that time she probably hasn't even told all her family memebers! Have they no compassion? Have they no shred of decency remaining?

[cellio]

So let's see. If I'm going to deliver a child and dump it in a trashcan because I don't want to be responsible for it, which is already a violation of probably several existing laws, I'm going to be deterred by this new law? Sheesh.