What Next: When a Miscarriage Becomes a Crime

Slate News

Slate Podcasts

News, News Commentary, Politics

4.6 • 6K Ratings

🗓️ 20 December 2023

⏱️ 26 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In September, Brittany Watts had a miscarriage at her home in Ohio. Prosecutors are now charging her with “abuse of a corpse,” a felony that could result in up to a year in prison. When does a miscarriage become a felony? And could the anti-abortion movement be using this case as a step towards achieving “fetal personhood”? Guest: Mary Ziegler, law professor at UC Davis and author of Roe: The History of a National Obsession. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	This episode is brought to you by SAP.
0:03.0	First, the bad news.
0:05.0	SAP business AI will not help you generate cubist versions of your family's holiday photos.
0:10.0	But it will help you understand which supplier is best to help you roll out your plant-based packaging in Southeast Asia
0:16.0	or identify the training your junior project manager needs to rise up the ranks,
0:21.0	or automate repetitive tasks while you focus on big innovations so you can be
0:26.4	ready for the next opportunity revolutionary technology real world results that's
0:31.6	SAP business AI.
0:33.0	At the beginning of the month, this local news clip started making the rounds online.
0:46.0	Police say a Warren woman had a miscarriage and now she's charged with abuse of a corpse.
0:52.0	It shows a woman in a courtroom, charged with a It was her own fetus. Investigators say they found a baby stuck in a toilet at Watts home on September 22nd.
1:08.0	Forensic pathologist Dr. George Sturbins testified in autopsy found no injury to the fetus
1:16.1	and that the unborn baby had died before passing through the birth canal.
1:20.6	Brittany Watts is the woman facing these potential charges.
1:24.0	She had a miscarriage at home.
1:26.0	Suddenly, that information was very, very public.
1:30.0	Watts looks frail and overwhelmed in front of the judge?
1:35.0	Her lawyer rubs her back to comfort her.
1:38.0	What stood out to you about this clip?
1:40.0	Like when you watched it, as an an attorney like was there something where you
1:44.9	thought like huh like what's happening here? Well I think the whole thing the
1:50.1	fact that she was being indicted for abuse of a corpse, or at least attempted to be indicted,
	...

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