Sue Hartigan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
> Hi Everyone:
>
> Dr. L. and I have been working on something and would appreciate any
> help or ideas anyone might have.
>
> First off I will repost the orginal story so you will know what I am
> talking about :)
>
> A law that makes it a felony for one parent to beat another does not
> apply to the beating of a pregnant woman by the father of the fetus, a
> state appeals court said.
>
> The ruling disappointed Riverside County prosecutors, who are discussing
> whether to appeal the case to the state Supreme Court, said Deputy
> District Attorney Colleen Mass.
>
> "Other rulings have given broad interpretations to the laws about
> spousal abuse," Mass said.
>
> The ruling by the 4th District Court of Appeals stems from the
> prosecution of Branson S. Ward, who was charged with assaulting Thea
> Airrington, his former girlfriend, in her Riverside apartment in March
> 1996.
>
> Airrington, who broke up with Ward the previous month, was 3 1/2 months
> pregnant at the time of the attack. Ward grabbed her arms, pushed her
> down, grabbed her by the hair and slammed her head into a closet door,
> slapped her and squeezed her neck, the court said.
>
> Prosecutors said the two still were seeing each other, though not living
> together.
>
> Ward was convicted of two felonies, aggravated assault and battery on
> the mother of his child, and sentenced to six years in prison. The
> sentence was double the usual term because Ward had a previous violent
> felony conviction and was covered by the three-strikes law.
>
> As drafted, the law used to prosecute Ward imposed felony penalties of
> up to four years in prison for beatings that would normally be
> misdemeanors, punishable by up to a year in jail, if the victim was the
> attacker's spouse of cohabitant.
>
> It was expanded in 1988 to include the beating of "the mother or father
> of (the attacker's) child." That amendment was used it the prosecution
> of Ward.
>
> Superior Court Judge W. Charles Morgan ruled that the parental violence
> law covered the beating of a pregnant woman.
>
> The appeals court, in overturning his ruling, said the law defines
> "mother" in a way that makes "the birth of a child...an essential
> prerequisite."
>
> The same law does not define "child" but other laws, prohibiting child
> abuse and neglect, have been interpreted to apply only to children after
> birth, said Justice Art McKinster in the 3-0 ruling.
>
> Mass, though, said murder statutes have provisions that allow someone to
> be charged in the death of a fetus.
>
> McKinster also rejected the state's argument that the law was intended
> to apply to all types of domestic violence, and said it was up to the
> Legislature to make that change.
>
> The attorney general's office may propose such a change, although it has
> not ruled out an appeal, said Deputy Attorney General Lilia Garcia, the
> state's lawyer.
>
> "We believe that a family relationship between the expectant mother and
> the batterer continues during the pregnancy, and she should be entitled
> to protection," Garcia said.
>
> Despite the ruling, Ward's prison sentence will not be reduced because
> it was legally based on the assault conviction, Garcia said.
>
> Diane Nicoles, Ward's lawyer, could not be reached for comment.
>
> Now here is what we are working on. I found a state law which may
> overturn this. It is:
>
> CALIFORNIA CODES
> CIVIL CODE
> SECTION 43-53
>
> 43. Besides the personal rights mentioned or recognized in the
> Government Code, every person has, subject to the qualifications and
> restrictions provided by law, the right of protection from bodily
> restraint or harm, from personal insult, from defamation, and from
> injury to his personal relations.
>
> 43.1. A child conceived, but not yet born, is deemed an existing
> person, so far as necessary for the child's interests in the event of
> the child's subsequent birth.
>
> Dr. L. and I would appreciate anything that anyone can contribute to our
> little project. We also have the court ruling if anyone would like to
> see it.
>
> Thanks Sue
--
Two rules in life:
1. Don't tell people everything you know.
2.
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