Court: Fetal-murder law not dependent on knowing woman was pregnant

Published: 2004-04-07

SAN FRANCISCO (CNS) -- A few days after similar legislation became federal law, the California Supreme Court said the state's fetal-murder law applies even when the killer was unaware that the victim was pregnant. The court on April 5 ruled 6-1 that killing a pregnant woman counts as two homicides. The decision overturned a 2002 lower court ruling. Carol Hogan, associate director for pastoral projects and communications for the state Catholic conference, said the ruling on the 34-year-old California law was "a good decision." The case involved the fetal-murder conviction of Harold Taylor, who killed his ex-girlfriend, Patty Fansler, in 1999 when she was 10 weeks pregnant. A state appeals court had ruled that he could not be prosecuted for killing her unborn child too, because he didn't know she was pregnant. In reinstating Taylor's conviction, Supreme Court Justice Janice Rogers Brown said he did not need to be aware "of how many potential victims his conscious disregard for life endangered."

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