Unborn Victims of Violence Act: Some Cases of Homicides of Unborn Children under Federal or Military Jurisdiction.

Currently, an unborn child is not legally recognized as a crime victim in federal law, including military law. Here are some examples of cases in which unborn children were injured or killed during the commission of federal crimes, in which full justice could not be done because of this gap in the law. These cases, and many others like them, illustrate the need for enactment of the Unborn Victims of Violence Act.

The Testimony of Michael Lenz

On July 21, 1999, the U.S. House Judiciary Constitution Subcommittee heard powerful emotional testimony from Michael Lenz of Oklahoma City. Mr. Lenz's wife, Carrie, and their unborn son were both killed in the 1995 bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. Mr. Lenz testified that the afternoon before the bombing, he and his wife had ultrasound photos taken, and learned their baby was a boy. They immediately named him Michael James Lenz III. "We were so happy we even paid for extra ultrasound pictures to show off," Mr. Lenz said. "When we arrived home that evening, we called all of our friends and relatives to tell them the news. We didn't know it at the time, but that would be the last time Carrie spoke to the people she loved most." The next morning, Carrie Lenz left early for work to show the ultrasound photos to her co-workers at the Drug Enforcement Administration office in the Murrah Building. "At 9:03 that morning I was no longer an expecting father or husband," Mr. Lenz said. "At 28 years old, I was a widower." Mr. Lenz said that the official death total for the bombing was 168, but three unborn children were also killed, so "in my mind, 171 people lost their lives that day, and three daddies-to-be became widowers." Even if his son alone had been killed and his wife had survived, federal law should recognize that his son was a victim, Mr. Lenz said, asking, "Should we as people allow that act of violence to remain a victimless crime? No Michael the Third ever mentioned? I don't think that would be right."

Here are some other cases:

* Sgt. Timothy Ward, a soldier serving at the Helemano Military Reservation in Honolulu, was convicted in January 2000 of premeditated murder in the death of his wife, Bianca Ward, who was in the latter stages of pregnancy at the time of her ...