When someone is at fault for doing something wrong to you, it can be a terrible situation. However, most parents would agree that it is worse when someone does wrong to your son or daughter. Such was the case for a Connecticut mother when a visit to the OB/GYN turned into the shock of her life when she discovers she is pregnant. However, the OB/GYN did not check the fetus until it was too late.
The woman entered the doctor’s office that day complaining of no period for 5 months. The doctors chose to remove the woman’s form of birth control, an IUD. However, the doctor did this without checking to determine if the patient was pregnant, which she was. The removal of the IUD caused a rupture in the baby’s membrane, which later led to the baby’s premature birth and death.
In response to the allegations made in a civil lawsuit, the respondent created an argument that the baby was not a person and therefore, no crime was committed. However, the judge shot this argument down immediately using the theory of birth, since the baby was born and then died, this is ultimately person-hood.
The plaintiffs claim that the doctor failed to use reasonable care and was therefore negligent in the death of the baby. This medical malpractice suit is a way for the family to put responsibility on the shoulders of the person who is responsible for the death of the child.
It appears that despite the actions of the doctor, the baby may have lived a long and healthy life with the proper fetal incubation time. However, the doctor allegedly failed to exercise reasonable care to determine if the patient was pregnant. Negligence is something that is not intentional, but it can have disastrous effects anyway. While the doctor likely did not mean to harm the baby, the doctor very well may have if they failed to exercise reasonable care. When that happens, compensation may be paid out to the plaintiffs to help with the unfortunate economic effects of the doctor’s negligence.
Source: lifesitenews.com, “Doctor fights ‘wrongful death suit’ by claiming baby wasn’t viable, so not a person,” October 26, 2015
