Judge: No More Children!

Judge: No More Children!

Judge Tells Woman Who Neglected Child No Kids, May Encourage Abortion

Austin, TX (LifeNews.com) -- A judge in Travis County, Texas has handed down a unique sentence for a woman convicted of child neglect. District Judge Charlie Baird told Felicia Salazar, 20, who admitted to failing to provide protection and medical care to her then-19-month-old daughter last year, that she can't have any more children. Though the decision makes sense in terms of not giving the young woman more parental responsibilities some pro-life advocates say there is a concern it could encourage Salazar to have an abortion should she become pregnant again. Baird sentenced Salazar, who had no criminal history, to 10 years of probation after she reached a plea bargain with prosecutors. In Texas, judges set conditions of probation. In addition to requiring Salazar to perform 100 hours of community service and to undergo a mental health assessment and setting other typical conditions, Baird told Salazar not to have any more children. Baird told the Statesman newspaper that Texas law gives judges the discretion to set any conditions of probation deemed reasonable. He also said that neither Salazar nor her lawyer, Kent Anschutz, objected. "When you look her background, the circumstances of this case," he said, "a reasonable condition of her probation was that she not conceive or bear any children." But Anschutz told the newspaper he is worried how this decision will play out. "Although I fully understand the sentiment and perspective of the judge in this matter, I question the enforceability of that particular condition," he said.