NewsMax intern Mark Magro
Friday, Oct. 18, 2002

The court reversed the manslaughter conviction of a pregnant woman who was accused of murder for stabbing and killing her boyfriend after he attacked her in a way that posed no mortal danger to her - but that could have ended her pregnancy, the New York Times reported Wednesday.

Jaclyn Kurr testified that after Antonia Pena punched her in the stomach, she felt obligated to protect her 16 to 17 week old fetus from danger. She was convicted in lower court of manslaughter and sentenced to 5 - 20 years in prison.

However, the Michigan Court of Appeals has reversed her conviction and ordered a new trial.

In a ruling that's sure to prompt hissy fits from the pro-choice crowd, the court said, "A pregnant woman may use deadly force to protect her fetus even when she does not fear for her own life."

If it's self-defense to kill another person in order to protect an unborn baby, then why is it not murder for killing that same baby in an abortion, pro-lifers can now logically argue? After all, if what Ms. Kurr did was self-defense and she herself wasn't in life-threatening danger, then who was?

The court's ruling at least suggests an answer to that question: Ms. Kurr's unborn child is in fact a person, and as such is entitled to all the rights and guarantees offered under the Constitution.

Whether this marks the first real change in governmental policy in abortion is still unclear, but the Michigan court's ruling is sure to leave pro-choice groups with some explaining to do.

Mark Magro is a student at St. Joseph's by-the-Sea High School in Staten Island, N.Y.

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