State News
Bill would toughen Ind. penalties for fetus deaths
By DEANNA MARTIN
Associated Press Writer
INDIANAPOLIS — Anyone who murders or attempts to murder a pregnant woman and causes the death of her unborn child could face a longer prison term under a bill that won final legislative approval Tuesday.
The bill was inspired by the shooting of an Indianapolis bank teller in April 2008. Katherin Shuffield was five months pregnant when she was wounded in the abdomen during a robbery. She survived, but the twin girls she and her husband were expecting did not.
Current Indiana law allows prosecutors to file murder charges in cases where a fetus dies, but only if the mother is at least seven months pregnant. The state’s feticide law covers fetuses that are not yet viable outside the womb, but supporters of the proposal say that crime’s current sentence of two to eight years is not enough.
Sen. Jim Merritt, a Republican from Indianapolis who sponsored the bill, said the Shuffield case was a tragedy and that the loss of the twin girls needed to be recognized.
“To me, those are living beings,” said Merritt, who is the father of twins.
The proposal would allow six to 20 years of additional prison time for people convicted of attempted murder, murder or felony murder if they cause the loss of a pregnancy. The bill would also increase prison time for feticide to six to 20 years.
Lawmakers wanted to add extra sentences to those crimes — rather than trying to expand the feticide law to cover all stages of pregnancy — to avoid a debate over when life begins. Bill supporters say the proposal would not affect the state’s current abortion laws.
Merritt said he hopes the bill could prevent future incidents like the Shuffield case.
Sen. Lindel Hume, D-Princeton, voted for the bill but doubted that the tougher sentences would make criminals think twice before pulling the trigger.
“They’re going to commit a crime regardless,” Hume said. “They’re not going to weigh one crime against another based on the number of years they might spend in prison.”
The Senate voted 44-2 to give the measure final legislative approval. The proposal now moves to Gov. Mitch Daniels, who can veto the proposal, sign it into law or let it become law without his signature.
- State News
-
-
A place to die with dignity
Rita Fiorentino remembers Becky Alexander having the most beautiful smile. Even up until the day she died.
-
Guns, uniforms taken from home of Brazil detective
State police say guns and police uniforms were stolen from the home of an agency detective during a burglary of his eastern Indiana home.
-
4-year-old boy rousts parents from burning home
Fire officials say a 4-year-old boy heard a smoke detector going off and rousted his sleeping parents in time to escape from a fire in their Indianapolis home.
-
19 IU med students headed to Haiti to provide care
Nineteen northwestern Indiana medical students will travel to Haiti to provide care to victims of the devastating earthquake that hit earlier this year.
-
Police: ‘Miracle’ toddler escapes serious injury
A three-year-old boy was thrown from a van during an Interstate 69 accident Thursday at about 5 p.m. He landed in the middle of the highway, but suffered no life threatening injuries, an Anderson Police Department spokesman said.
-
State treasurer candidate wants banks to help communities
Democratic Indiana Treasurer candidate Pete Buttigieg wants to see Indiana banks play a larger role in the economic recovery and offer up more loans to create jobs.
-
Indiana police close part of I-69 after semi crash
Indiana State Police have closed a section of northbound Interstate 69 after two semitrailers crashed and scattered debris across the highway.
-
Purdue spotlights psychoactive drugs' good side
A new Purdue University exhibit is shining a spotlight on the positive side of the psychedelic drugs that got a bad reputation in the 1960s.
-
Homeless students up 26 percent since 2006-07
Homelessness among children enrolled in Indiana public schools rose 26 percent over the two years ending in 2008-09 as the state felt the brunt of the economic downturn, a new report shows.
-
Kokomo GM plant reassessing business operations
General Motors leaders on Wednesday addressed the company’s business operations and competition to its workers in Kokomo, GM said.
- More State News Headlines
-
