If there’s anything sadder than domestic violence, it’s domestic
violence involving a pregnant woman and an insane quantity of booze. Last week,
New Zealand
police, responding to a 4 a.m. domestic violence complaint, found a heavily
intoxicated woman whose partner had hit her over the head with a bottle. She
was nine months pregnant, and had been drinking with her partner for eight
hours straight.
The man was imprisoned on assault charges, but police were
uncertain about how to deal with the mother-to-be. They considered bringing charges
against her for endangering her child by binge drinking, but ultimately decided
to refer the case to Child, Youth, and Family—largely because maternal
substance abuse is not explicitly outlawed. In some rare cases, pregnant drinkers have been charged with attempted fetal homicide,
but New Zealand, like the United States,
does not criminalize the simple act of drinking while pregnant.
This recent case has New Zealand police hoping to change
that. Detectives involved in the case have called for legislation banning
maternal substance abuse, believing that's the best way to stop addicted mothers-to-be from endangering their fetuses. But others feel that throwing pregnant women in jail
is not the answer. Furthermore, legislating pregnant women's behavior could be a slippery slope. While many pregnant women feel comfortable having a daily drink, others would never consider consuming even a drop of wine.
What do you think? Should drinking while pregnant be against
the law?
Photo: The Daily Mail
