“the viability rule is dead and buried”
By Office of Tom Parker
Life News
Today, in a fetal-homicide case decided by the Alabama Supreme Court, Jessie Phillips v. State of Alabama, Justice Tom Parker once again penned a forceful defense of the rights and personhood of unborn children, strongly urging the United States Supreme Court to overturn its infamous Roe v. Wade abortion decision as a “constitutional aberration” that hinders “the states’ ability to protect the God-given respect and dignity of unborn human life.”
In the majority opinion in Phillips, the Alabama Supreme Court unanimously affirmed the death penalty sentence for Jessie Phillips, a man convicted of capital murder for shooting to death his wife Erica Phillips and their unborn child, Baby Doe.
Phillips had argued that he should not get the death penalty for killing his unborn child because, he said, the child was not a “person” under Alabama law. The Court rejected Phillips’s arguments and held that, under Alabama law, Baby Doe was a full “person” and that “the value of the life of an unborn child is no less than the value of the lives of other persons.”
Justice Parker fully agreed with the majority opinion, writing that “unborn children are persons entitled to the full and equal protection of the law.” Justice Parker wrote separately, however, to emphasize how broadly and consistently the law and judicial decisions in Alabama and around the Country protect the rights of unborn children, and to contrast that with “the continued legal anomaly and logical fallacy that is Roe v. Wade.”
In Alabama the legislature expressly enacted the “Brody Act” 12 years ago to include, within the definition of a “person” protected by the murder and assault statutes, “an unborn child in utero at any stage of development, regardless of viability.” Justice Parker noted that the law was changed “with the expressed intent of addressing just the sort of double-murder of which Phillips was convicted.”
Phillips complained that he was the only person in the United States on death row for killing a woman whose unborn child was in the first trimester of pregnancy, but Justice Parker rejected this argument, stating that
Justice Parker fully agreed with the majority opinion, writing that “unborn children are persons entitled to the full and equal protection of the law.” Justice Parker wrote separately, however, to emphasize how broadly and consistently the law and judicial decisions in Alabama and around the Country protect the rights of unborn children, and to contrast that with “the continued legal anomaly and logical fallacy that is Roe v. Wade.”
In Alabama the legislature expressly enacted the “Brody Act” 12 years ago to include, within the definition of a “person” protected by the murder and assault statutes, “an unborn child in utero at any stage of development, regardless of viability.” Justice Parker noted that the law was changed “with the expressed intent of addressing just the sort of double-murder of which Phillips was convicted.”
Phillips complained that he was the only person in the United States on death row for killing a woman whose unborn child was in the first trimester of pregnancy, but Justice Parker rejected this argument, stating that
“Phillips’s crimes were capital not because he killed a pregnant woman but because he killed two persons.”
Justice Parker added that, to the extent Phillips was arguing that his unborn child was less of a person because the baby was young (6-8 weeks), Justice Parker dismissed that argument as
“entirely unconvincing in light of the natural law, Alabama law, and this Court’s numerous recent decisions consistently recognizing that an unborn child is a human being from the earliest stage of development and thus possesses the same right to life as a born person.”
Life News article continues here
Voices for Life is an e-publication dedicated to informing and educating the public on pro-life and pro-family issues. To read our Mission Statement, use this link. Follow us on Facebook, Google, and Pinterest. Help us spread the pro-life message by sharing our articles on your favorite social networks.
Pregnant, need help or know someone who does?
National Hotline: Call 1-800-712-HELP or Text 'HELPLINE' to 313131.
If you or someone you know is suffering after abortion, confidential non-judgmental help is available. Call Project Rachel's national toll-free number 888-456-HOPE (4673) or visit hopeafterabortion.org.
Voices for Life is an e-publication dedicated to informing and educating the public on pro-life and pro-family issues. To read our Mission Statement, use this link. Follow us on Facebook, Google, and Pinterest. Help us spread the pro-life message by sharing our articles on your favorite social networks.Pregnant, need help or know someone who does?
National Hotline: Call 1-800-712-HELP or Text 'HELPLINE' to 313131.
In Southeast Penna: Call the Community Women's Center at 215-826-8090
If you or someone you know is suffering after abortion, confidential non-judgmental help is available. Call Project Rachel's national toll-free number 888-456-HOPE (4673) or visit hopeafterabortion.org.
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