November 28, 2003

BETTER DEAD THAN CLEFT:

Curate's court action over abortion (Colin Blackstock, November 19, 2003, The Guardian)

A curate is taking legal action to force police to investigate a late abortion on a woman who did not want to have a baby with a cleft palate.

Joanna Jepson is taking Paul West, chief constable of West Mercia police, to court because she says he sanctioned an illegal abortion by failing to investigate a pregnancy termination after the six month legal limit.

An unnamed woman chose to abort the foetus after finding out it would be born with a cleft lip and palate - although the pregnancy was past 24 weeks. After this time an abortion can only be carried out if there is a risk of serious handicap.


eugenics
\Eu*gen"ics\, n. The science of improving stock, whether human or animal. --F. Galton.

Improving?

Posted by Orrin Judd at November 28, 2003 7:35 PM
Comments

Save the baby. Terminate the mother.

Posted by: NKR at November 28, 2003 8:52 PM

Yeah. Apparently she never even stopped to think that, in this day and age, cleft palates and lips can be repaired by surgeons.

Posted by: Joe at November 28, 2003 9:12 PM

Understand that when NARAL drones on about "protecting the health of the mother," this is what they really mean.

Posted by: AC at November 28, 2003 9:54 PM

Someone should also give the doctor a permanent cleft palate.

Posted by: jim hamlen at November 28, 2003 10:26 PM

It isn't even eugenics; cleft palates are congenital, not genetic.

Posted by: mike earl at November 29, 2003 12:24 AM

From the article (defending the woman):

"Clearly it is the case that what some people regard as extremely serious, others would feel differently about."

And social conservatives take flak about slippery slopes!


Posted by: Peter B at November 29, 2003 6:21 AM
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