Idaho legislation approved for imprisoning pregnant women for drug use

[Heretic.Ape.]

Idaho State Senate Narrowly Approves Legislation To Imprison Pregnant Women For Drug Use

Legislation to punish women for using drugs while pregnant narrowly passed the Idaho Senate at the end of February. The Idaho State Journal reported on March 1, 2006 ( "'Meth-Mom' Bill Clears Senate 18-16") that "The bill, which passed by an 18-16 vote, would mean pregnant mothers convicted of doing marijuana, LSD, methamphetamine or other drugs could face up to five years in jail and a $50,000 penalty. If the option is available to them, the guilty mothers could choose to attend drug court instead of going to jail."
According to the State Journal, "Law enforcement officials have said the bill would give them a new tool in the fight against meth and other drugs and local prosecutors say the measure would benefit the health of both mothers and their children. But opponents of the proposal blasted the “meth moms" bill on Tuesday as a reactionary solution to an ever-widening social problem. "The bill does nothing to address the problem of addiction," said Sen. Kate Kelly, D-Boise. “Being addicted to meth is not a crime, it's a disease." According to one lawmaker, statistics from South Carolina have shown that implementation of tough laws against pregnant drug users result in an 80 percent reduction in pre-natal treatment."
The State Journal noted that "Interestingly, the 35-member Senate includes only four women, three of whom voted against the bill. And while methamphetamine and other drugs are widely thought to have negative consequences if taken during pregnancy, the only substance definitively shown to harm a fetus is alcohol, a product legal to those age 21 and over."