When Bei Bei Shuai swallowed poison in December, she was focused on killing herself, not on the welfare of the fetus she was carrying. But Shuai survived her suicide attempt, and her fetus did not, leading the Marion County prosecutor's office to charge her with murder.
On Friday, national medical groups and local experts came out in her support, arguing the court should dismiss the charges.
A brief filed on behalf of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Medical Women's Association and the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum, among others, said prosecuting Shuai could set a dangerous precedent.
Specifically, it could dissuade pregnant women from seeking prenatal care if they felt they could be prosecuted for mistreating their fetus, said David Orentlicher, Samuel R. Rosen professor of law at the Indiana University School of Law-Indianapolis and co-author of the brief.
"The goal of these prosecutions is to promote fetal welfare, but in fact it's more likely that they will endanger fetal welfare, because now pregnant women may have to be worried because a trip to the doctor's office may end up as a trip to jail," he said.
The American Civil Liberties Union also has submitted a brief to the court, arguing that charging Shuai with a crime for attempting suicide is unconstitutional because a man or nonpregnant woman would not been charged for the same act.
The Marion County prosecutor's office is reviewing the documents filed on Shuai's behalf and has no comment, said A.J. Deer, a spokesman for the office.
Shuai's attorney, Linda Pence, said carrying through with the case against Shuai could serve as a deterrent for other depressed pregnant women. After Shuai took the poison, she let two friends take her to the hospital, where her life was saved.
"Prosecuting pregnant women who are trying to harm themselves is very bad public policy," Pence said. "This is the most expansive interpretation that a prosecutor could give."
Shuai consented to undergo a cesarean section six days after she was hospitalized at Methodist Hospital, once her doctors deemed it safe.
Her premature daughter did not survive.
Shuai then spent more than four weeks in inpatient psychiatric care. She was recovering from her depression when the prosecutor brought charges three weeks ago, Pence said. She has been in jail since then.
A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday to determine whether Shuai should be released on bail.
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