[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 131 (Friday, October 1, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2015]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 UNBORN VICTIMS OF VIOLENCE ACT OF 1999

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                               speech of

                           HON. TONY P. HALL

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 30, 1999

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2436) to 
     amend title 18, United States Code, and the Uniform Code of 
     Military Justice to protect unborn children from assault and 
     murder, and for other purposes:

  Mr. HALL of Ohio. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of H.R. 2436, the 
Unborn Victims of Violence Act. Under current federal law, an 
individual who commits a federal crime of violence against a pregnant 
woman receives no additional punishment for killing or injuring the 
fetus. I think this is wrong and should be changed.
  An incident that occurred in my district illustrates why this law is 
so desperately needed. In 1996, a man enlisted in the Air Force and 
stationed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base--a jurisdiction which is 
governed by federal military law--severely beat his wife who was 34 
weeks pregnant at the time. Although the woman survived the attack, her 
uterus split open, expelling the baby into her mother's abdominal 
cavity, where the baby died.
  The man was arrested and charged with several criminal offenses for 
the attack. However, Air Force prosecutors concluded that they could 
not charge him with a separate offense for killing the baby because, 
although Ohio law recognizes an unborn child as a victim, federal law 
does not.
  In 1998, that judgment was concurred in the U.S. Air Force Court of 
Criminal Appeals ruling on the case. The court said, ``Federal homicide 
statutes reach only the killing of a born human being . . . (Congress) 
has not spoken with regard to the protection of an unborn person.''
  Mr. Chairman, I believe it is time that Congress speaks on this issue 
by passing H.R. 2436. Many states, like Ohio, have passed laws to 
recognize unborn children as human victims of violent crimes. However, 
these laws do not apply on federal property. I think they should and 
therefore would urge my colleagues to pass the Unborn Victims of 
Violence Act.

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