Defenseless Victims of Abuse

Bringing new life in to the world is an exciting experience. Multiple pregnant women go through vast lengths to ensure the health and welfare of their children. However, not all women go through the steps necessary while they are pregnant. Numerous women drink alcohol while pregnant that can cause severe heath complications to their unborn children. And if these children do survive the abuse of alcohol the children face various obstacles throughout their entire lives. Although alcohol is a legal substance pregnant woman who consume alcohol should face punitive consequences by law because of the severe penalty alcohol imposes on their defenseless unborn children.

When a woman drinks alcohol, during pregnancy, the alcohol goes strait through the placenta into the immature baby's growing body. The blood alcohol level of the mother and unborn child is a one-to-one ratio. Meaning if the blood alcohol level of the mother is 0.07 then so is the unborn child's. However, the unborn baby lacks the ability to break down the alcohol as fast as an adult. Therefore, "As a result, the alcohol level of the baby's blood can be even higher and can remain elevated longer than the level in the mother's blood" (March of Dimes, 2005, p.1). This causes severe health complications in unborn children. There is no safe amount of alcohol that pregnant women can consume. Thus, pregnant women and women who plan on becoming pregnant should avoid drinking alcohol during pregnancy.

Drinking alcohol during pregnancy is known to cause fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). FASDs are the leading cause of preventable birth defects. According to the March of Dimes (2005), "40,000 babies are born with some degree of alcohol-related damage (1, 2)
Unborn children exposed to toxic substances in the womb experience various tribulations that carry on through their adulthood. People affected with FASD experience numerous affects from mental retardation to learning disabilities. The effects of FASD are vindictive. "These difficulties manifest as memory and learning problems, poor-solving abilities, attention deficits, and poor comprehension of word meanings and grammar" (Yvette D. Hayter, 2007, p.3).These difficulties also cause the people affected with FASDs to be unsuccessful in school and with jobs. People affected with FASDs suffer throughout their entire lives with the disabilities inflicted on them by their mothers. People affected with FASDs are also at greater risk to conduct in criminal behavior. Women who drink alcohol during pregnancy clearly harm their children in all aspects of their lives and for their entire lives. Thus, "All women who drink alcohol should stop as soon as they think they are pregnant. Heavy drinkers should avoid pregnancy until they can abstain from alcohol throughout pregnancy" (March of Dimes, 2005, p.3).

Currently, there is an ongoing debate about whether women who drink alcohol while pregnant should face punitive consequences by law or whether they should not. Presently throughout the United States there are no established laws that prohibit pregnant women from harming their unborn children with toxic substances. However, several states have punished women for harming their unborn children with toxic substances with laws that prohibit child abuse or neglect. According to Issues and Controversies on File (2002), "More than 200 women in 30 states have been prosecuted for behavior during pregnancy that posed a risk of harm to the fetus" (p.3). On the other hand numerous women get away with harming their unborn children. "The state supreme courts in Florida, Kentucky, Nevada, Ohio and Wisconsin, and many lower courts have consistently struck down fetal-abuse rulings, often finding that they have no legal basis or are unconstitutional" (Issues and Controversies, 2002, p.3). The consequences women have faced are diverse. Some women were forced into rehabilitation, some were incarcerated, and some lost custody of their children (Issues and Controversies, 2001, p.2).

Opponents of fetal abuse prosecutions claim that establishing laws against pregnant women who harm their fetus will not deter women from drinking alcohol while pregnant. They believe that punitive laws are counterproductive. According to the Center for Reproductive Rights (2000), "...When women are imprisoned during their pregnancies or shortly after giving birth, they and their children are even less likely to receive appropriate care" (p.8). Opponents believe that prosecutions disregard women's addiction and need for rehabilitation, "Putting women in jail - where drugs maybe available but treatment and prenatal care are not - jeopardizes the health of pregnant women and their future children and does little to solve the underlying problem of addiction" (Center for Reproductive Rights, 2000, p.8). Critics also claim that prosecution against women invade the patient and doctor confidentiality. Another essential reason opponents oppose the prosecution of pregnant women is because opponents claim that such prosecutions violate women's rights to choose what they want to do with their bodies.

Women have a powerful impact on the outcome of their children. Women have the ability to reproduce. They have the power to give life. When women become pregnant they have the choice to carry their child to full term pregnancy or to terminate their child with an abortion. Women who decide to carry their child to full term pregnancy should ensure the health and welfare of their unborn children. According to the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducted for women ages 18-24 years of age, "The results indicated that approximately 10% of pregnant women used alcohol, and approximately 2% engaged in binge drinking or frequent use of alcohol" (CDC, 2004, p.1). Numerous women consume alcohol despite the risks alcohol imposes on their unborn children. According to the March of Dimes (2005), "To date, there is no proof that heavy drinking by the father can cause FAS" (p.3). Women should be obligated to ensure the health and welfare of their unborn children. Children should not have to bear the consequences of their mother's behavior, during pregnancy, for the rest of their lives. Criminal laws should be established to dispirit women from harming their unborn children.

The custom of criminal laws have always been apart of the Untied States history. English colonists came to North America and brought with them the custom of criminal laws. Although, the use of criminal laws originated from "...the English common law tradition, it has evolved in distinctive ways to meet the needs and requirements of U.S. society" (Driesbach, Daniel L., 1997-2007, p.3). Throughout American history criminal laws have continuously changed. Some new laws have been established while old ones no longer remain. Today in modern day America hundreds of laws exist compared to only 20-30 prior to the 18^th century. New laws have been implemented that past American leaders have never even thought of "...such as carjacking, bribing college athletes, and making false statements in connection with the registration of stocks and bonds-have been classified by legislatures as new statutory crimes" (Driesbach, Daniel L., 1997-2007, p.3). Laws are continually being implemented to serve American society. Establishing laws that prosecute women for harming their unborn children is a necessity in modern day America.

The purposes of criminal laws are to discourage violence, misconduct, theft, and so forth. Criminal laws are established for a variety of reasons. One reason for criminal laws are "...to respond to harmful acts committed by individual acts" (Driesbach, Daniel L., 1997-2007, p.1). Criminal laws are essential to ensure the safety of society and are a necessity in American society. "Criminal law seeks to protect the public from harm by inflicting punishment upon those who have already done harm and by threatening with punishment those who are tempted to do harm" (Dreisbach, Daniel L, 1997-2007, p.1). Criminal laws are implemented not to violate one's rights but to protect society from harm. Women clearly inflict harm on their unborn children when they consume alcohol. Therefore, laws should be implemented to keep women from harming their unborn children during pregnancy with alcohol abuse.

One aim of criminal law is rehabilitation. Criminal law's ambition of, "...rehabilitation seek to prevent crime by providing offenders with the education and treatment necessary to eliminate criminal tendencies, as well as the skills to become productive members of society" (Dreisbach, Daniel L, 1997-2007, p.2). Women who drink alcohol during pregnancy may have an alcohol addiction. Thus, pregnant women who consume alcohol during pregnancy may require treatment. Multiple women have more than one child affected with FASDs. If laws are established to punish women for drinking alcohol, during pregnancy, it will educate women about the serious affects of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Educating women about the consequences of drinking alcohol during pregnancy could possibly deter women from consuming alcohol during pregnancy. Legally punishing women will also provide the treatment women require with their possible alcohol addiction. Thus, laws should be implemented nationwide against women who consume alcohol during pregnancy.

Criminal law also has a range of penalties. The range of penalties suit the severity of the crimes committed. Two penalties that may suit the prosecution of fetal abuse by alcohol include split sentence and probation. Split sentence is, "A brief period of shocking confinement followed by a period of probation" (John Wilson, 2005, p.11). During the brief period of confinement women could be educated on the affects of drinking alcohol during pregnancy and offered treatment. Jails throughout the U.S. also prohibit illegal drugs as well as alcohol on their premises. Probation is, "A set of specific rules of conduct while in the community, and supervision of compliance with those rules" (John Wilson, 2005, p.11). Probation will allow pregnant women to remain at home to care for their additional children if they have any. However, law officials will maintain supervision over the offender to ensure pregnant women do not additionally harm their unborn children with alcohol. Criminal laws will enforce women not to drink alcohol during pregnancy.

Numerous unfortunate children are born every day and every hour with birth defects-birth defects that are 100% preventable. The birth defects these children are born with will affect every aspect of their lives. They will have to bear the consequences of their mother's actions, during pregnancy, for the rest of their lives. All children are a blessing to the world and should be nurtured to obtain a healthy pleasurable life. Women have the power to foster brilliant members of society. However, women who decide to impose harm on future members of society with alcohol need to be punished by law. Women's actions during pregnancy have an immense effect on the health and welfare of their unborn children. Discouraging women from drinking alcohol during pregnancy will keep women from harming future members of society. Laws are a necessity to enforce that drinking alcohol during pregnancy is wrong-wrong because of the penalty it poses on the defenseless victims of abuse. References

Center for Reproductive Rights. (2000), Punishing Women for Their Behavior During

Pregnancy: an Approach That Undermines Women's Health and Children's Interests.

Retrieved April 22, 2007 from http://www.reproductiverights.org

Department of Health and Human Services Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

(2006). Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. Retrieved April 27, 2007 from

hppt://www.cdc.gov/fas/fasask.htm

Dreisbach, D. (1997-2007). Criminal Law. Retrieved April 29, 2007 from Microsoft

Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2007 http://encarta.msn.com

Fetal Abuse. (2001, February 16). Issues and Controversies on File. Retrieved April 2,

2207, from Issues and Controversies @ FACTS.com database.

Hyter, Y. (2007). Understanding Children Who Have Been Affected by Maltreatment

and Prenatal Alcohol Exposure. Language, Speech & Hearing Services in Schools, 38(2),

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Wilson, J. (2005, October, 1). Fundamentals of Criminal Law: Laws are meant to be broken.

Retrieved May 17, 2007 from North Carolina Wesleyan College at

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