Mother accused of murder after refusing caesarean section
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《英国医生杂志》
Washington
A woman in Salt Lake City, Utah, has been charged with murder after the death of one of her near term twins—the result, say prosecutors, of her refusal to have a medically advised caesarean section. The infants, one female and the other male, were delivered on 13 January. The male baby was stillborn but the female survives.
The woman, Melissa Ann Rowland, aged 28, was charged with a single count of first degree criminal homicide. She is currently in jail in lieu of $250 000 (￡139 000; 204 000) bond. If convicted, Ms Rowland could be sentenced to five years in prison.
"She knew that refusing medical treatment would very likely cause death," said Kent Morgan, a spokesman for Salt Lake district attorney Davis Yocum, in a statement.
Court documents say that Ms Rowland was informed "numerous times" between 25 December and 9 January that her unborn twins would die if she did not get immediate medical treatment. Prosecutors maintain that Ms Rowland was negligent in ignoring repeated warnings of the need for a caesarean section because of the deteriorating condition of the fetuses. Initially, press reports said that Ms Rowland had refused the caesarean on the grounds that it would leave her with a scar, a charge she denies, according to a report by a Salt Lake City television station.
The indictment follows a decision by the Utah Supreme Court in January that held that unborn children at all stages of development are covered under the state's criminal homicide statute. An exception is made for abortions.
Ms Rowland has a history of inflicting child abuse. Four years ago, according to a report in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, she was sentenced to five years' probation by a Pennsylvania court for recklessly endangering the welfare of her daughter, a child from an earlier pregnancy.
Ms Rowland has two other children, who are reported to be living with their grandparents in Virginia. Both were born by caesarean section. She is either divorced or separated from her husband, according to Ms Rowland's lawyer, Michael Sikora, quoted in an Associated Press dispatch. Mr Sikora added that Ms Rowland had a history of mental illness and had been treated in a psychiatric hospital.
Previous charges against pregnant women for abusing their fetuses have related to substance misuse of alcohol and drugs. Ms Rowland's is the first case in Utah to be based on a woman's decision to refuse a caesarean section, although there have been cases in other states involving such operations.(Charles Marwick)
A woman in Salt Lake City, Utah, has been charged with murder after the death of one of her near term twins—the result, say prosecutors, of her refusal to have a medically advised caesarean section. The infants, one female and the other male, were delivered on 13 January. The male baby was stillborn but the female survives.
The woman, Melissa Ann Rowland, aged 28, was charged with a single count of first degree criminal homicide. She is currently in jail in lieu of $250 000 (￡139 000; 204 000) bond. If convicted, Ms Rowland could be sentenced to five years in prison.
"She knew that refusing medical treatment would very likely cause death," said Kent Morgan, a spokesman for Salt Lake district attorney Davis Yocum, in a statement.
Court documents say that Ms Rowland was informed "numerous times" between 25 December and 9 January that her unborn twins would die if she did not get immediate medical treatment. Prosecutors maintain that Ms Rowland was negligent in ignoring repeated warnings of the need for a caesarean section because of the deteriorating condition of the fetuses. Initially, press reports said that Ms Rowland had refused the caesarean on the grounds that it would leave her with a scar, a charge she denies, according to a report by a Salt Lake City television station.
The indictment follows a decision by the Utah Supreme Court in January that held that unborn children at all stages of development are covered under the state's criminal homicide statute. An exception is made for abortions.
Ms Rowland has a history of inflicting child abuse. Four years ago, according to a report in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, she was sentenced to five years' probation by a Pennsylvania court for recklessly endangering the welfare of her daughter, a child from an earlier pregnancy.
Ms Rowland has two other children, who are reported to be living with their grandparents in Virginia. Both were born by caesarean section. She is either divorced or separated from her husband, according to Ms Rowland's lawyer, Michael Sikora, quoted in an Associated Press dispatch. Mr Sikora added that Ms Rowland had a history of mental illness and had been treated in a psychiatric hospital.
Previous charges against pregnant women for abusing their fetuses have related to substance misuse of alcohol and drugs. Ms Rowland's is the first case in Utah to be based on a woman's decision to refuse a caesarean section, although there have been cases in other states involving such operations.(Charles Marwick)