SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A California judge has dismissed a murder case against a woman who delivered a stillbirth after consuming meth while pregnant.
Kings County Superior Court Judge Robert Shane Burns said Thursday that prosecutors failed to provide evidence that Chelsea Becker consumed drugs knowing it could kill her child.
Becker’s attorneys have argued that California's homicide law does not apply to pregnant women. Prosecutors have said the case is not about reproductive rights but about stopping a woman who repeatedly abused narcotics while pregnant.
Numerous medical and public health groups oppose punishment for drug use while pregnant.
