Buried in the headlines of the Laci Peterson story is a contradiction that lies at the heart of one of this country’s most perilous issues. Over the weekend, forensic evidence confirmed that two bodies washed up along the San Francisco Bay were Laci Peterson and her unborn infant. Almost as soon as the forensic evidence was in, Scott Peterson, Laci’s husband, was arrested only miles from the Mexican border with nearly $10,000 in his possession.

Shortly after the arrest, it was revealed Scott Peterson will face charges of capital murder for the deaths of his 27-year old wife and their unborn son. In this case, the unborn child of Laci and Scott Peterson is considered a live human being.

According to California’s “Fetal Homicide Law,” Scott Peterson could be arrested for the homicide of the unborn child. The law was enacted in 1970 after the beating of a pregnant California woman led to the delivery of a stillborn girl. It was later determined the miscarriage was a result of the assault. The law was later clarified in 1994 to apply to all fetuses beyond eight months.

Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion for any reason during the first trimester, and abortion became legal during the second trimester if a medical reason necessitated it. Second-trimester abortions must be done by a medical doctor and in a hospital. Third-trimester abortions apply to extreme cases where the mother is a victim of rape or incest or if the mother’s life is at risk.

In 2000, California legally permitted about 240,000 abortions. Many of these cases were allowed without question during the first trimester. Yet, in Roe vs. Wade, the court determined an unborn child is a non-person and, therefore, property of the mother and, therefore, permissible to be aborted.

That means if a pregnant woman decides to abort her child at four weeks, everything is all right. The child being aborted is a non-person, and the operation is allowed. However, if that four-week-old child is beaten to death in utero, then the child is considered a human being. If the child were not considered alive and a person, then capital murder charges would not be possible for both Laci and her yet-to-be-born son Connor Peterson. A non-person cannot be killed.

What needs to be clarified here is whether or not a child is in fact a child, alive and existing at eight days, eight weeks or eight months. There is no biological difference between an eight-week-old fetus/non-person that is aborted and one that is beaten to death. The only difference is the circumstances upon which the fetus, baby or non-person is terminated.

The stipulations upon whether or not a fetus is deemed “in existence” should not rest upon whether that fetus was beaten to death or aborted. The reason a fetus is deemed alive at eight weeks in a beating case and not in an abortion case is simply justice. The mother receives a shred of justice for the death of her unborn child when that child was taken away from her against her will during an act of violence.

It makes little sense to classify a fetus as a person for the sake of charging someone with capital murder. If real justice is to be served, the fetus must be classified as a person from day one, regardless where life takes it — be it a successful birth or a tragic death via aggravated assault.

Personally, it is my hope that if Scott Peterson is the one who murdered Laci and Connor, that he be charged with capital murder and be subject to the death penalty. Most importantly, I hope some clarification arises out of this case on the true definition of “alive.”

Derek Montgomery ([email protected]) is a sophomore majoring in journalism and political science.