A Long Island woman should not have been convicted of second-degree manslaughter for the death of her 6-day-old baby from in utero injuries sustained in a car accident she caused, the Court of Appeals ruled Thursday.
Judge Eugene Pigott Jr. wrote for a 5-1 court—in a case he said was one of first impression—that when provisions of the homicide statute are read in tandem with one another, especially Penal Law §§125.05(1) and 125.15(1), it becomes clear that the Legislature did not intend to hold a pregnant woman criminally responsible for reckless conduct “with respect to themselves and their unborn fetuses unless such conduct is done intentionally.”
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