docwebster ([personal profile] docwebster) wrote2005-01-06 09:53 pm

Positively shocking VA/DE legislative development (warning: might be triggering)

VA Legislative Sentry: Have a Miscarriage, Go to JAIL?


"Imagine the following scenario. You are at home alone at 8:00 on a Friday night. You are 8 weeks pregnant. All of a sudden, you begin to experience heavy cramping and bleeding. You realize with shock and sadness that you are probably experiencing a miscarriage. You are overwhelmed with grief and surprised by the intensity of physical pain involved. When your partner comes home, you break the sad news to him. Over the next few hours, you suffer pain, cramping, and intermittent bleeding. Exhausted, you finally fall asleep in your partner's arms around 4 AM. You sleep until noon.


Guess what? You just earned yourself up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine. Why? Because you failed to call the cops and report your miscarriage within 12 hours."

[identity profile] josette.livejournal.com 2005-01-08 12:32 am (UTC)(link)
I have an idea. Because I used to live in Virginia, I can do this. Every woman who is fertile and has had sex since her last menstrual period should report it to the authorities. I'm not pregnant but I could have been since I was sexually active, so to be on the safe side I'm reporting it. Let them keep records when my period was, I never can remember...overwhelm them and maybe they'll drop it. Please put a time frame on this, like 20 weeks. I'm sending this to my mom and she'll write Warner about it.