NARAL Pro-Choice New Hampshire Expresses Concern over HB 209
(Concord, NH) Today, the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee heard testimony regarding HB 209, a bill intended to establish a separate offense for causing the death of, or injury to, an unborn child. Liza Dube, Political Director for NARAL Pro-Choice New Hampshire testified before the committee, “We absolutely support measures to prosecute crimes against pregnant women to the full extent of the law, however, this bill is not the answer to decreasing violence against pregnant women”. Dube explained that current New Hampshire statute already imposes an additional penalty for assailants who commit a violent act toward a pregnant woman resulting in miscarriage or stillbirth. “Instead of enacting unnecessary laws that depart from current state law, lawmakers should work to ensure that existing laws that deter and punish violence against women are adequately enforced,” Dube concluded. A sub-committee of the House Criminal Justice Committee met last fall to review a similar bill designed to grant rights to a fetus separate and distinct from the woman. The sub-committee overwhelmingly recommended no further legislation of this variety due to the existing New Hampshire penalties for crimes against pregnant women.
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