[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 480 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 480

   To amend titles 10 and 18, United States Code, to protect unborn 
                          victims of violence.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 7, 2001

Mr. DeWine (for himself, Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Voinovich, Mr. 
Brownback, Mr. Ensign, Mr. Enzi, Mr. Hagel, Mr. Helms, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. 
  Nickles, and Mr. Santorum) introduced the following bill; which was 
       read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend titles 10 and 18, United States Code, to protect unborn 
                          victims of violence.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Unborn Victims of Violence Act of 
2001''.

SEC. 2. PROTECTION OF UNBORN CHILDREN.

    (a) In General.--Title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting after chapter 90 the following:

              ``CHAPTER 90A--PROTECTION OF UNBORN CHILDREN

``Sec.
``1841. Causing death of or bodily injury to unborn child.
``Sec. 1841. Causing death of or bodily injury to unborn child
    ``(a)(1) Any person who engages in conduct that violates any of the 
provisions of law listed in subsection (b) and thereby causes the death 
of, or bodily injury (as defined in section 1365 of this title) to, a 
child, who is in utero at the time the conduct takes place, is guilty 
of a separate offense under this section.
    ``(2)(A) Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, the 
punishment for that separate offense is the same as the punishment 
provided for that conduct under Federal law had that injury or death 
occurred to the unborn child's mother.
    ``(B) An offense under this section does not require proof that--
            ``(i) the person engaging in the conduct had knowledge or 
        should have had knowledge that the victim of the underlying 
        offense was pregnant; or
            ``(ii) the defendant intended to cause the death of, or 
        bodily injury to, the unborn child.
    ``(C) If the person engaging in the conduct thereby intentionally 
kills or attempts to kill the unborn child, that person shall be 
punished as provided under section 1111, 1112, or 1113 of this title, 
as applicable, for intentionally killing or attempting to kill a human 
being, instead of the penalties that would otherwise apply under 
subparagraph (A).
    ``(D) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the death penalty 
shall not be imposed for an offense under this section.
    ``(b) The provisions referred to in subsection (a) are the 
following:
            ``(1) Sections 36, 37, 43, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 229, 
        242, 245, 247, 248, 351, 831, 844(d), 844(f), 844(h)(1), 
        844(i), 924(j), 930, 1111, 1112, 1113, 1114, 1116, 1118, 1119, 
        1120, 1121, 1153(a), 1201(a), 1203, 1365(a), 1501, 1503, 1505, 
        1512, 1513, 1751, 1864, 1951, 1952(a)(1)(B), 1952(a)(2)(B), 
        1952(a)(3)(B), 1958, 1959, 1992, 2113, 2114, 2116, 2118, 2119, 
        2191, 2231, 2241(a), 2245, 2261, 2261A, 2280, 2281, 2332, 
        2332a, 2332b, 2340A, and 2441 of this title.
            ``(2) Section 408(e) of the Controlled Substances Act of 
        1970 (21 U.S.C. 848(e)).
            ``(3) Section 202 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 
        U.S.C. 2283).
    ``(c) Subsection (a) does not permit prosecution--
            ``(1) for conduct relating to an abortion for which the 
        consent of the pregnant woman has been obtained or for which 
        such consent is implied by law in a medical emergency;
            ``(2) for conduct relating to any medical treatment of the 
        pregnant woman or her unborn child; or
            ``(3) of any woman with respect to her unborn child.
    ``(d) In this section--
            ``(1) the terms `child in utero' and `child, who is in 
        utero' mean a member of the species homo sapiens, at any stage 
        of development, who is carried in the womb; and
            ``(2) the term `unborn child' means a child in utero.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of chapters for part I of title 
18, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating 
to chapter 90 the following:

``90A. Causing death of or bodily injury to unborn child....    1841''.

SEC. 3. MILITARY JUSTICE SYSTEM.

    (a) Protection of Unborn Children.--Subchapter X of chapter 47 of 
title 10, United States Code (the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is 
amended by inserting after section 919 (article 119) the following:
``Sec. 919a. Art. 119a. Causing death of or bodily injury to unborn 
              child
    ``(a)(1) Any person subject to this chapter who engages in conduct 
that violates any of the provisions of law listed in subsection (b) and 
thereby causes the death of, or bodily injury (as defined in section 
1365 of title 18) to, a child, who is in utero at the time the conduct 
takes place, is guilty of a separate offense under this section.
    ``(2)(A) Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, the 
punishment for that separate offense is the same as the punishment for 
that conduct under this chapter had that injury or death occurred to 
the unborn child's mother.
    ``(B) An offense under this section does not require proof that--
            ``(i) the person engaging in the conduct had knowledge or 
        should have had knowledge that the victim of the underlying 
        offense was pregnant; or
            ``(ii) the defendant intended to cause the death of, or 
        bodily injury to, the unborn child.
    ``(C) If the person engaging in the conduct thereby intentionally 
kills or attempts to kill the unborn child, that person shall be 
punished as provided under section 918, 919, or 880 of this title 
(article 118, 119, or 80), as applicable, for intentionally killing or 
attempting to kill a human being, instead of the penalties that would 
otherwise apply under subparagraph (A).
    ``(D) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the death penalty 
shall not be imposed for an offense under this section.
    ``(b) The provisions referred to in subsection (a) are sections 
918, 919(a), 919(b)(2), 920(a), 922, 924, 926, and 928 of this title 
(articles 111, 118, 119(a), 119(b)(2), 120(a), 122, 124, 126, and 128).
    ``(c) Subsection (a) does not permit prosecution--
            ``(1) for conduct relating to an abortion for which the 
        consent of the pregnant woman has been obtained or for which 
        such consent is implied by law in a medical emergency;
            ``(2) for conduct relating to any medical treatment of the 
        pregnant woman or her unborn child; or
            ``(3) of any woman with respect to her unborn child.
    ``(d) In this section--
            ``(1) the terms `child in utero' and `child, who is in 
        utero' mean a member of the species homo sapiens, at any stage 
        of development, who is carried in the womb; and
            ``(2) the term `unborn child' means a child in utero.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such subchapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
section 919 the following:

``919a. 119a. Causing death of or bodily injury to unborn child.''.
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