Post by Logan on Mar 26, 2016 4:23:12 GMT -6
Rape victims who do not want to raise a child conceived during a sexual assault have two options in Maryland: abortion or persuading their attackers to sign off on an adoption.
For nearly 10 years, advocates tried unsuccessfully to change state law so that rape victims could sever ties with their assailants by terminating rapists' parental rights.
A bill that would do that has advanced further in the General Assembly this year than it ever has before.
"Maryland's the only state that I'm aware of where there has been years and years of battles, and nothing has changed," said Shauna Prewitt, a lawyer, activist and mother of an 11-year-old conceived during rape. "The thing that's most surprising to me, honestly, is just that it hasn't happened earlier."
Read more: www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-parental-rights-20160325-story.html
For nearly 10 years, advocates tried unsuccessfully to change state law so that rape victims could sever ties with their assailants by terminating rapists' parental rights.
A bill that would do that has advanced further in the General Assembly this year than it ever has before.
"Maryland's the only state that I'm aware of where there has been years and years of battles, and nothing has changed," said Shauna Prewitt, a lawyer, activist and mother of an 11-year-old conceived during rape. "The thing that's most surprising to me, honestly, is just that it hasn't happened earlier."
Read more: www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-parental-rights-20160325-story.html