[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 305 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. CON. RES. 305

 Expressing the sense of the Congress that the presence of brain wave 
    activity and spontaneous cardiac activity should be considered 
         conclusive evidence of human life for legal purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 12, 2000

 Mr. Coburn (for himself, Mrs. Myrick, Mr. Pitts, Mrs. Chenoweth-Hage, 
  Mr. Shows, Mr. Weldon of Florida, Mr. Ryan of Wisconsin, Mr. DeLay, 
Mrs. Emerson, Mr. Hostettler, Mr. Barcia, Mr. Bartlett of Maryland, Mr. 
 Dickey, Mr. Hunter, Mr. Green of Wisconsin, Mr. Shadegg, Mr. Smith of 
  New Jersey, Mr. Tiahrt, Mr. Jones of North Carolina, Mr. Taylor of 
  Mississippi, Mr. DeMint, Mr. Largent, Mr. Aderholt, Mr. Terry, Mr. 
Souder, Mr. Schaffer, Mr. Doolittle, Mr. Vitter, Mr. McIntosh, and Mr. 
 Brady of Texas) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which 
             was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the Congress that the presence of brain wave 
    activity and spontaneous cardiac activity should be considered 
         conclusive evidence of human life for legal purposes.

Whereas the Declaration of Independence states as self-evident truths ``that all 
        Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with 
        certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the 
        Pursuit of Happiness'';
Whereas ascertaining the presence of human life is relevant to critical 
        questions of law and rights;
Whereas in every jurisdiction in the United States death is legally defined 
        either by statute or by judicial determination as the irreversible 
        cessation of spontaneous cardiac activity and brain wave activity;
Whereas the presence of these indices is legally valid as proof of the presence 
        of life;
Whereas spontaneous cardiac activity and brain wave activity are both readily 
        detectable with modern medical equipment;
Whereas brain wave activity in a human being is detectable at 41 days after 
        conception and is continuous thereafter throughout the individual's 
        life;
Whereas the human heartbeat is detectable at 24 days after conception and is 
        continuous thereafter throughout the individual's life;
Whereas the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution prohibits any State from 
        depriving any person of life, liberty, or property without due process 
        of law;
Whereas the Supreme Court, in its 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade, stated that 
        ``the word `person,' as used in the Fourteenth Amendment, does not 
        include the unborn'';
Whereas when the State of Texas in Roe v. Wade urged that a State has a 
        compelling interest in protecting human life from and after conception, 
        the Supreme Court declined to resolve ``the difficult question of when 
        life begins'';
Whereas the presence of human life is detectable apart from its beginning, and a 
        determination of the presence of human life is a sufficient basis for 
        the recognition of rights; and
Whereas clarity and consistency in the law are essential to the protection of 
        the rights guaranteed by the Constitution: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That 
it is the sense of the Congress that--
            (1) the presence of brain wave activity and spontaneous 
        cardiac activity should be considered conclusive evidence for 
        all legal purposes of the presence of human life, without 
        regard to age, health, defects, or condition of dependency;
            (2) the absence of brain wave activity or spontaneous 
        cardiac activity, other than an irreversible cessation of these 
        activities, should not be considered conclusive evidence for 
        legal purposes that a human life is not present; and
            (3) the Constitution protects all human life in the United 
        States.
                                 <all>