In a sane world, this would be a reasonable, even important piece of legislation, New Mexico HB 206, creating a felony penalty for tampering with evidence in a rape or incest case:
'Tampering with evidence shall include procuring or facilitating an abortion, or compelling or coercing another to obtain an abortion, of a fetus that is the result of criminal sexual penetration or incest with the intent to destroy evidence of the crime.'
Clearly we would want to be able to punish, say, an incest perpetrator who compelled his pregnant daughter to have an abortion.
But consider the world we live in — a world where women are being thrown in jail for drinking while pregnant, or being kept in prison or mental facilities to keep them from having an abortion. And you can quickly see that this law would mean no rape or incest victim could dare have an abortion. Because some police officer or prosecutor, either through crime-busting zeal or (more likely) disagreement with the legal right to abortion, would decide to punish — or threaten to punish — a rape or incest victim who chose to have an abortion.
"But there's no intent to destroy evidence of the crime!" you might say. "She chose to destroy the the primary evidence of the crime," the New Mexico justice officer would reply. "Whether or not it was to help the criminal escape, it's still intentionally destroying evidence.
And, yeah, maybe, even probably, such a charge wouldn't fly for long. Maybe. Depending on the crime-busting zeal or anti-abortion sentiments of the judge faced with these charges. But even one day in jail, or being arrested, or even being threatened with arrest or jail, is the last conceivable thing we would want for a victim of rape or incest.
I'd really like to think that this bill was intended as if it would be implemented in a sane world. Regardless, as it stands, it's unacceptably prone to abuse.
Embedded Link
New Mexico Bill Would Imprison Rape Victims Who Receive Abortions
Should a recently introduced bill in New Mexico become law, rape victims will be required to carry their pregnancies to term during their sexual assault trials or face charges of “tampering with evide…
Google+: View post on Google+
…headdesk…
And somehow I wonder if that isn't the intention after all – just stop abortions and rape prosecutions.
How just how does this destroy the evidence that the woman was pregnant?
Make room, +Isaac Sher
Head-
>Desk, Head->Desk, Head–>DeskA couple of thoughts…
Couldn’t the aborted fetus be kept as evidence?
If the fetus is the primary evidence of rape, what about the rapes where no pregnancy occurs? This is, what, 95% of all rapes? Surely there is sufficient evidence without a fetus.
@Avo – In some circumstances, yes, I suppose. Of course, in many rape cases (and rape kits) I believe they use an an Emergency / Morning After Pill to prevent a pregnancy from occurring; given that some folks consider that as abortion, would use of such kits be considered legally suspect?
+Dan Eastwood, presumably without a fetus or baby to examine, a DNA sample can't be done to determine paternity.
Apparently they are ammending it…the person who proposed it said it was meant to criminalize the rapist…as in forcing a rape/incest victim to get an abortion (many rapes are commited by people the victim knows and hopefully you know what incest is) and she is submitting new wording to reflect that. http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/01/24/16681099-bill-criminalizing-abortions-after-rape-causes-an-uproar-in-new-mexico?lite=
Thank goodness. Lets are what the new words are
Good.