The inalienable right to life possessed by every human being is present from the moment of initial formation, and all human beings shall be entitled to the equal protection of persons under the law.
Personhood in the Law
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I. The child is a person from fertilization – The Code of Alabama
“(3) PERSON. The term, when referring to the victim of a criminal homicide or assault, means a human being, including an unborn child in utero at any stage of development, regardless of viability…
“(d) Nothing in Article 1 or Article 2 shall permit the prosecution of (1) any person for conduct relating to an abortion for which the consent of the pregnant woman or a person authorized by law to act on her behalf has been obtained or for which consent is implied by law or (2) any woman with respect to her unborn child.
“(e) Nothing in this section shall make it a crime to perform or obtain an abortion that is otherwise legal.” (Code of Alabama § 13A-6-1)
The Code of Alabama states without exception that the unborn child is a person from the moment that he begins to develop. The fact that the Code of Alabama contains an exception to the definition of murder which allows abortions to be performed instead of a limitation on the definition of a person indicates that the child is still legally a person even when his life is being intentionally ended through abortion.
II. The unborn child cannot be put to death for the crimes of another person – The Code of Alabama
“If there is reason to believe that a female convict is pregnant, the sheriff must, with the concurrence of a judge of the circuit court, summon a jury of six disinterested persons, as many of whom must be physicians as practicable … If such jury is of opinion, and so find, that the convict is with child, the sheriff or officer acting in his place must suspend the execution of the sentence.” (Code of Alabama § 15-18-86)
The state of Alabama, along with every other state in America, forbids the execution of a woman who is pregnant regardless of the stage of development of the child. Such a stay of execution is only reasonable if the child is considered a person under the protection of the law, for then it would be unlawful to take the life of the child without a separate trial before a jury of his peers. If the unborn child were just a part of the mother’s body and not a separate individual, then a stay of execution for the reason of pregnancy would be wholly unnecessary.
III. No person can be denied protection from murder – The Constitution of Alabama
“…and he shall not be compelled to give evidence against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, except by due process of law;” (Constitution of Alabama – Section 6)
“That all courts shall be open; and that every person, for any injury done him, in his lands, goods, person, or reputation, shall have a remedy by due process of law; and right and justice shall be administered without sale, denial, or delay.” (Constitution of Alabama – Section 13)
According to our own state’s constitution, it is unlawful to deprive a person of life without the due process of law and the opportunity to seek a remedy for injury by due process of law. Since our state code defines the unborn child as a person, the exception in the code which permits abortion is unconstitutional. It deprives a person of his life without a trial by jury in accordance with the due process of law and without the opportunity to seek a remedy for that injury.
IV. No person can be denied protection from murder – The Fourteenth Amendment
“…nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” (Constitution of the United States – Amendment XIV)
According to the Fourteenth Amendment, the state of Alabama does not have the right to deprive an unborn child of his life because we have defined that child as being a person and because he is not capable of being tried before a jury of his peers as required by the due process of law. Furthermore, it is unconstitutional for the state of Alabama to deny the unborn child the equal protection of the law by making his murder an exception to the states’ prohibition against murder. The state of Alabama is violating the Constitution of the United States, and we are complicit in that violation for as long as we do nothing to challenge it.
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I. The child is a person from fertilization – The Code of Alabama
“(3) PERSON. The term, when referring to the victim of a criminal homicide or assault, means a human being, including an unborn child in utero at any stage of development, regardless of viability…
“(d) Nothing in Article 1 or Article 2 shall permit the prosecution of (1) any person for conduct relating to an abortion for which the consent of the pregnant woman or a person authorized by law to act on her behalf has been obtained or for which consent is implied by law or (2) any woman with respect to her unborn child.
“(e) Nothing in this section shall make it a crime to perform or obtain an abortion that is otherwise legal.” (Code of Alabama § 13A-6-1)
The Code of Alabama states without exception that the unborn child is a person from the moment that he begins to develop. The fact that the Code of Alabama contains an exception to the definition of murder which allows abortions to be performed instead of a limitation on the definition of a person indicates that the child is still legally a person even when his life is being intentionally ended through abortion.
II. The unborn child cannot be put to death for the crimes of another person – The Code of Alabama
“If there is reason to believe that a female convict is pregnant, the sheriff must, with the concurrence of a judge of the circuit court, summon a jury of six disinterested persons, as many of whom must be physicians as practicable … If such jury is of opinion, and so find, that the convict is with child, the sheriff or officer acting in his place must suspend the execution of the sentence.” (Code of Alabama § 15-18-86)
The state of Alabama, along with every other state in America, forbids the execution of a woman who is pregnant regardless of the stage of development of the child. Such a stay of execution is only reasonable if the child is considered a person under the protection of the law, for then it would be unlawful to take the life of the child without a separate trial before a jury of his peers. If the unborn child were just a part of the mother’s body and not a separate individual, then a stay of execution for the reason of pregnancy would be wholly unnecessary.
III. No person can be denied protection from murder – The Constitution of Alabama
“…and he shall not be compelled to give evidence against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, except by due process of law;” (Constitution of Alabama – Section 6)
“That all courts shall be open; and that every person, for any injury done him, in his lands, goods, person, or reputation, shall have a remedy by due process of law; and right and justice shall be administered without sale, denial, or delay.” (Constitution of Alabama – Section 13)
According to our own state’s constitution, it is unlawful to deprive a person of life without the due process of law and the opportunity to seek a remedy for injury by due process of law. Since our state code defines the unborn child as a person, the exception in the code which permits abortion is unconstitutional. It deprives a person of his life without a trial by jury in accordance with the due process of law and without the opportunity to seek a remedy for that injury.
IV. No person can be denied protection from murder – The Fourteenth Amendment
“…nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” (Constitution of the United States – Amendment XIV)
According to the Fourteenth Amendment, the state of Alabama does not have the right to deprive an unborn child of his life because we have defined that child as being a person and because he is not capable of being tried before a jury of his peers as required by the due process of law. Furthermore, it is unconstitutional for the state of Alabama to deny the unborn child the equal protection of the law by making his murder an exception to the states’ prohibition against murder. The state of Alabama is violating the Constitution of the United States, and we are complicit in that violation for as long as we do nothing to challenge it.
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