HB1376 Making Its Way Through Arkansas General Assembly

BY MELANIE BUCK –

A bill written by State Representative Nate Bell that would clarify the definition of ‘person’ to include ‘an unborn child in utero at any stage of development’ has passed the House by a vote of 89-0 and now sits in the hands of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Bell’s bill, HB1376, comes on the heels of a landmark case presented by Prosecuting Attorney Andy Riner.

In January 2014, Riner prosecuted Melissa McCann-Arms in Polk County Circuit Court for one count of Introduction of a Controlled Substance into the Body of Another Person and a jury sentenced her to 20 years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections. Arms’ newborn baby was born at Mena Regional Health System addicted to methamphetamine.

Being the first case of its kind in Arkansas, upon conviction, Riner said, “This case was about bringing attention to [the baby] and other babies who are being born addicted to controlled substances, and it was an important one. It seems that nothing is being done by the legislature to address this problem, and having begun to poke around the edges of the problem we have realized that it is much more common than we suspected.”

When McCann-Arms took her case to the Arkansas Appellate Court, Appellate Court Judge Phillip Whiteaker affirmed the decision of the Polk County jury and the road was paved for prosecutors to pursue what many claim is becoming an all too common occurrence. Riner has since filed charges against Jessica Fox, a Polk County woman who is accused of introducing drugs into the system of her unborn child, as well.

An Impact Assessment report prepared on March 23, 2015 by the staff of the Arkansas Sentencing Commission with data supplied by the Arkansas Department of Correction and the Administrative Office of the Courts shows just how common the occurrence has become.

The report states: The Department of Human Services publishes a report containing information on (1) infants born with an illegal substance present in its body as a result of the pregnant mother knowingly using an illegal substance before the birth of the newborn or (2) the presence of an illegal substance in the mother’s bodily fluids or bodily substances at the time of the baby’s birth. For Fiscal Year 2014 (July 1, 2013-June 30, 2014), there were 867 women with referrals in this report, some testing positive for multiple drugs. Of these women: 1. There were 542 instances in which the mother was found to have used a drug classified as a Schedule IV, V, or VI during pregnancy, which could have resulted in a Class C felony charge under this proposed bill. 2. There were 182 instances in which the mother was found to have used a drug classified as a Schedule I, II, or III non-narcotic during pregnancy, which could have resulted in a Class B felony charge under this proposed bill. 3. There were 183 instances in which the mother was found to have used a drug classified as a Schedule I or II narcotic or methamphetamine during pregnancy, which could have resulted in a Class Y felony charge under this proposed bill.

Riner said he sent the McCann-Arms decision to Bell and said, “He went to work right away.” Riner is grateful to see the proposed legislation go beyond controlled substances. “This bill addresses more than controlled substances, but also would apply injuries to unborn children caused by DWI, battery on a pregnant woman, etc.”

According to americanpregnancy.org, symptoms of methamphetamine-addicted babies include tremors, sleeplessness, muscle spasms, and feeding difficulties. Some experts believe that learning difficulties may result as the child gets older. Riner said in the Polk County Republican meeting on Monday, March 9, “This baby is born and he’s shaking from withdrawals but the nurses said that the worst thing is how addicted babies scream.” Riner said nurses have described heartbreaking sounds of horror when talking about the screams that come from drug-addicted babies.

Even though the legislation was unclear, appellate Judge Whiteaker did concur with Riner that in the case of McCann-Arms, it did include unborn children and affirmed the conviction based on the fact that her fluids continued to flow through the umbilical cord to the infant for a period after the child was born.

McCann-Arms is currently appealing her case to the Arkansas Supreme Court and Fox is currently awaiting trial in Polk County.

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Jeri Pearson

Jeri is the News Director for Pulse Multi-Media and Editor of The Polk County Pulse. She has 10 years of experience in community focused journalism and has won multiple press association awards.

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