Lawmaker eyes bill to criminalize fetal deaths
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Published: November 9, 2009
BENNINGTON — The chairman of the Vermont Senate Judiciary Committee says he's drafting a bill that would criminalize the untimely deaths of fetuses.
State Sen. Richard Sears says he's working on merging laws in Maine and Illinois that address fetal deaths while keeping the issue separate from the abortion issue.
The bill was spurred by an August car crash that caused Patricia Blair of Bennington, who was six months pregnant, to lose the twins she was carrying.
Under Vermont law, the driver of the other car, 22-year-old Kelly Cook of Pownal, cannot be charged in the loss of the twins. But Cook pleaded not guilty this week to three felony charges stemming from the crash, including driving under the influence of a drug with injury resulting.
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