Canada's Bill to Protect Pregnant Women
Canada's Bill to Protect Pregnant Women, Unborn Children Moves Ahead
Ottawa, Canada (LifeNews.com) -- A bill that would put Canada in league with the United States and offer legal protection and justice to pregnant women and their unborn children has advanced in the nation's parliament. Bill C-484, sponsored by Conservative MP Ken Epp, would allow prosecutors to bring two charges when mother and baby are killed or injured. The Unborn Victims of Crime Act does what U.S. federal law and the laws of 36 states do by acknowledging that there are two victims when a pregnant mother is assaulted and she and her baby are affected. Canadian MPs had a free vote on the issue, meaning they didn't have to follow the dictates of their party leadership. As a result, the measure won approval on a second reading vote by a 147 to 133 margin. Prime Minister Stephen Harper voted for the bill while four conservatives, including cabinet ministers Lawrence Cannon, Gordon O'Connor and Josee Verner voted against it. Those votes were offset by the more than 20 members of the Liberal Party who backed it.
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