Baltimore Sun Examines Debate Over Prosecuting, Jailing Women Who Use Illegal Drugs During Pregnancy

The Baltimore Sune on Thursday examined the debate over whether law enforcement officials should prosecute and jail women who use illegal drugs during pregnancy. The Sun profiled the case of Kelly Lynn Cruz, a Talbot County, Md., woman who was sent to prison after delivering an infant who had traces of cocaine in his blood. The American Civil Liberties Union is defending Cruz and has appealed her case to the Maryland Supreme Court. The group's central argument is that Maryland law defines reckless endangerment as conduct by one person that causes considerable risk of harm to another person but that the term "person" does not apply to a fetus under state statutes, according to the Sun. Law enforcement officials say they are simply prosecuting crimes and helping to protect children, but opponents say the women need treatment instead of punishment. Although the number of cases prosecuting women for using drugs while pregnant increased in the late 1980s and early 1990s, courts often have found the convictions to be unconstitutional or beyond the intent of legislators, the Sun reports (Green, Baltimore Sun, 8/18).


Baltimore Sun


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