An Act relative to fetal homicide

This bill creates a new crime of fetal homicide in Massachusetts, allowing prosecutors to charge individuals separately for causing the death or serious physical injury to a fetus. The law defines a "child in utero" as a human being at any stage of development carried in the womb and specifies that "bodily injury" includes significant physical harm such as broken bones or internal organ damage. Punishment for violating this new section would be the same as if the injury or death had occurred to the pregnant woman, without requiring proof that the offender knew the victim was pregnant or intended to harm the fetus. The legislation explicitly prohibits using these provisions to prosecute abortions performed with the pregnant woman's consent or any medical treatment provided to the mother or her unborn child.