The UK's Department of Health claims that in Britain "around one in 100 babies are now born with alcohol-related disorders".
www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/drinking-alcohol-while-pregnant-... "A landmark test case due to be heard by the Court of Appeal could criminalise excessive drinking during pregnancy.
It will be argued that a six-year-old girl is the victim of a crime because she suffered brain damage when she was exposed to alcohol in the womb - a risk that her mother was aware of.
The case comes amid a 50 per cent rise in Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) in the past three years, with 313 damaged from exposure to alcohol in the womb in 2012/2013."
Should pregnant women whose alcohol consumption is found to have caused damage to their unborn children be held criminally liable?
In many jurisdictions criminality is determined by the presence of both a guilty mind and a guilty act.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actus_reus If the mother knows the possible impact of alcohol on the foetus but knowingly drinks anyway should she be held accountable?
How easy would this be to prove? What might the implications be for the child and the mother if she were to be found guilty? What would be a fitting punishment?
What do you think about this landmark case?
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