Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: Ethical, Legal and Moral Implications Associated with the Rights of the Unborn Child

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders in Adults: Ethical and Legal Perspectives

Part of the book series: International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine ((LIME,volume 63))

  • 1633 Accesses

Abstract

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is an umbrella term used to describe a profound constellation of disabilities that may result when a pregnant woman consumes teratogenic ethanol (alcohol), causing the developing fetus to be neurodevelopmentally impaired (Douds et al. 2012).

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    For most of recorded history, people have fundamentally disagreed about the moral status of the human embryo. In early times this was because people knew very little about what actually went on in the womb and so had very little idea what an embryo was. Later, the problem was that a pregnancy could not be recognized until it was well established and the embryo made its presence felt by causing unmistakable symptoms in the mother or by starting to move in the womb. At this stage of the pregnancy, it was natural to think of the embryo as a being that was able to do things and they assumed that this was also true of the very earliest (and unknown) stages of pregnancy (BBC Ethics. www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/abortion/child/historical.shtml. Accessed 21/6/14).

  2. 2.

    In the new DSMV (2013) neurodevelopmental disorder associated with prenatal alcohol exposure (ND-PAE) is included in the appendix as conditions needing further study (p. 798) in order to empower judges and other legal professionals for decision-making involving afflicted individuals. ND-PAE is used as an example for “Other Specified Neurodevelopmental Disorder” code 315.8 (p. 86). http://www.casaforchildren.org/site/c.mtJSJ7MPIsE/b.8968413/k.9568/JP3_Rich_Brown.htm

  3. 3.

    But the terminology of ‘maternal-fetal conflict’ probably oversimplifies the situation in most cases. See Cheryl M Plambeck, Divided Loyalties: Legal and Bioethical Considerations of Physician-Pregnant Patient Confidentiality and Prenatal Drug Abuse. Journal of Legal Medicine (2002), 4-5.

  4. 4.

    See also GEN. ASSEMBLY OF PA., SENATE BILL NO. 575, S3 (1989) (proposing an expansion of Pennsylvania’s definition of child abuse to include a “substance-abused child”, defined as “a child who is born with fetal alcohol syndrome…The Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act”). Cited McGinnis, DM (1990) Prosecution of drug-exposed babies: Constitutional and criminal theory. Univ PA Law Review, 139(2), 505-39.

  5. 5.

    A father’s age has been stated to influence whether a baby might be born alive or dead (Goodwin 2008 cited Wyrobeck et al. 2006). Thus, research has demonstrated that increasing paternal age is significantly associated with spontaneous abortion independent of maternal age and multiple other factors (Kleinhaus, Perrin et al. 2006).

  6. 6.

    See Case centers on rights of unborn child’s supposed father. Daily Record [St. Louis, MO/St. Louis Countian] 5 Feb 2003. General One File. Accessed 24 March 2015.

  7. 7.

    See Unmarried biological fathers must be given notice and chance to comply with statutory requirements before terminating their parental rights: Heart of Adoptions, Inc. v J.A., No. SC07-738 (Fla. 2007). Child Law Practice Newsletter (2007) 26(6), 82.

References

  • ABC Net (News). 2014. Drinking alcohol during pregnancy targeted as NT Government considers rights of unborn child. Accessed 14 June 2014.

    Google Scholar 

  • Abel, E.L. 1997. Was the fetal alcohol syndrome recognized in the ancient near East? Alcohol and Alcoholism 33: 3–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Abel, E.L. 2006. Fetal alcohol syndrome: A cautionary note. Current Pharmaceutical Design 12: 1521–1529.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Astley, S.J. 2004. Diagnostic guide for fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: The 4-digit diagnostic code. Seattle: University of Washington.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bailey, B., V. Delany-Black, C. Covington, J. Ager, J. James, J. Hannigan, and R. Sokol. 2004. Prenatal exposure to binge drinking and cognitive and behavioral outcomes at age 7 years. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 191: 1037–1043.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • BBC, UK. 2014. http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/abortion/philosophical/moralperson.shtml. Accessed 13 June 2014.

  • Belfast Telegraph. 2008. BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. Accessed 7 July 2014.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, B. 1991. Pregnant women and the duty to rescue: A feminist response to the fetal rights debate. Law in Context 1(1): 70–91.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boland, F.J., A.E. Chudley, and B.A. Grant. 2002. The challenge of fetal alcohol syndrome in adult offender populations. Forum on Corrections Research 14(3). Accessed 17 July 2014.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burd, L., D.K. Fast, J. Conry, and A.D. Williams. 2010. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder as a marker for increased risk involvement with corrections. The Journal of Psychiatry and Law 38: 559.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caplan, P.J. 1989. Don’t blame the mother: Mending the mother-daughter relationship. New York: Harper & Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carmichael Olson, H., A.P. Streissguth, P.D. Sampson, H.M. Barr, F.L. Bookstein, and K. Theide. 1997. Association of prenatal alcohol exposure with behavioral and learning problems in early adolescence. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 36: 1187–1194.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. 2012. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). Data and statistics. http://www.edc.gov/mcbddd/fasd/data.html. Accessed 16 July 2014.

  • Chernoff, G. 1980. The fetal alcohol syndrome: Clinical studies and strategies of prevention. In Prevention of mental retardation and other developmental disabilities, ed. M.K. McCormack. New York: Marcel Dekker.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chudley, A.E., Conry, J., Cook, J.L., Loock, C., Rosales, T., and LeBlanc. 2005. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: Canadian guidelines for diagnosis. CMAJ 172, 5: suppl S1–S21.

    Google Scholar 

  • CICA v First-tier Tribunal and CP (CIC). 2013. UKUT 0638 (AAC).

    Google Scholar 

  • Daily Mail, UK. 2014. www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2550391/women-drink-alcohol-pregnancy-guilt. Accessed 18 June 2014. Also see www.drinkaware.co.uk.

  • Daily Telegraph, UK. 2014. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10612818/Drinking-alcohol-during-pregnancy. Accessed 20 June 14.

  • Dineen, C.E. 1994. Fetal alcohol syndrome: The legal and social responses to its impact on Native Americans. Heinonline 70 N.D.L. Rev. 1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Douds, A.S., H. Stevens, and W.E. Sumner. 2012. Sword or shield? A systematic review of the roles FASD evidence plays in judicial proceedings. Criminal Justice Policy Review XX(X): 1–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Douglas, H. 2010. The sentencing response to defendants with foetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Criminal Law Journal 34: 221–239.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drakich, J. 1989. In search of the better parent: The social construction of ideologies of fatherhood. Canadian Journal of Women and the Law 3(1): 69–87.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drinkaware, UK. 2014. www.drinkaware.co.uk.

  • EUROMAC. 1992. A European concerted action: maternal alcohol consumption and its relation to the outcome of pregnancy and child development at 18 months. International Journal of Epidemiology 21(Suppl. 1): S1–S87.

    Google Scholar 

  • Faludi, S. 1991. Backlash: The undeclared war against american women. NY: Crown Publishing Group.

    Google Scholar 

  • FASD-Canadian-Link. 2013. FASD-Canadian-News@yahoogroups.com. Accessed 26 June 2014.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fast, D.K., and J.L. Conry. 2004. The challenge of fetal alcohol syndrome in the criminal legal system. Addiction Biology 9: 161–666.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fast, D.K., and J.L. Conry. 2009. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and the criminal justice system. Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews 15: 250–257.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Field, M. 1989. Controlling the woman to protect the fetus. Law, Medicine & Health Care 17: 114.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fletcher, J.F. 1974. The ethics of genetic control: Ending reproductive roulette. Garden City: Doubleday.

    Google Scholar 

  • Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 1981. Surgeon General’s advisory on alcohol and pregnancy. FDA Drug Bulletin 11: 9–10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gallagher, J. 1987. Prenatal invasions and interventions: What’s wrong with fetal rights? Harvard Women’s Law Journal 10: 9–58.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gearing, R.E., T. McNeill, and F.A. Lozier. 2005. Father involvement and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: Developing best practices. JFAS International 3: e14.

    Google Scholar 

  • Greschner, D. 1990. Abortion and democracy for women: A critique of Tremblay v. Daigle. McGill Law Journal 35: 633–669.

    Google Scholar 

  • Guerri, C., E. Riley, and K. Stromland. 1999. Commentary on the recommendations of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists concerning alcohol consumption in pregnancy. Alcohol and Alcoholism 34: 497–501.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodwin, M. 2008. Prosecuting the womb. The George Washington Law Review 76: 1657.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hanigsberg, J.E. 1991. Power and procreation: State interference in pregnancy. Revue de droit dOttawa 23(1): 36–70.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hanson, J.W. 1981. Counselling for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. In Genetic screening and counselling: A multidisciplinary perspective, ed. Applewhite et al. Illinois: Charles C Thomas, Springfield.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harris, G.W. 1986. Fathers and fetuses. Ethics 96(3): 594–603.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heriot, M.J. 1996. Fetal rights versus the female body: Contested domains. Medical Anthropology Quarterly 10(2): 176–194.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hill, R.M., and L.M. Tennyson. 1980. An historical review and longitudinal study of an infant with fetal alcohol syndrome. In Alcoholism: A perspective, ed. F.S. Messiha, and G.S. Tyner, 177–201. Westbury: PJD Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoffman, J. 1995. Pregnant addicted—and guilty. New York Times Magazine, August 19.

    Google Scholar 

  • Howell, K.K., M.E. Lynch, K.A. Platzman, G.H. Smith, and C.D. Coles. 2006. Prenatal alcohol exposure and ability, academic achievement and school functioning in adolescence: A longitudinal follow-up. Journal of Pediatric Psychology 31(1): 116–126.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hrcr.org/org/safrica/life/tremblay_daigle.html. 1989. Tremblay v. Daigle. Accessed 20 March 2015.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobson, J.L., and S.W. Jacobson. 1994. Prenatal alcohol exposure and neurobehavioural development. Alcohol Health and Research World 18(1): 30–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jayawickrama, N. 2002. The judicial application of human rights law: National, regional and international jurisprudence. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Kleinhaus, K., M. Perrin, Y. Friedlander, O. Paltiel, D. Malaspina, and S. Harlap. 2006. Paternal age and spontaneous abortion. Obstetrics and Gynecology 108(2): 369–377.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koren, G., I. Roifman, and I. Nulman. 2004. Hypothetical framework: FASD and criminality—Causation or association? The limits of evidence-based knowledge. Journal of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome International 2(e6): 1–4. http://www.motherisk.org/JFAS_documents/FASD_Criminality.pdf.

  • Larcher, V., and J. Brierley. 2014. Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD)—diagnosis and moral policing: An ethical dilemma for paediatricians. Archives of Disease in Childhood 10: 1136.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, H.J., J.-S. Ryu, N.Y. Choi, Y.S. Park, Y.I. Kim, D.W. Hanm, K. Ko, C.Y. Shin, H.S. Hwang, K.-S. Kang, and K. Ko. 2014. Transgenerational effects of paternal alcohol exposure in mouse offspring. Animal Cells and Systems 17(6): 429.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Linder, E.N. 2005. Punishing prenatal alcohol abuse: The problems inherent in utilizing civil commitment to address addiction. Illinois Law Review, March 2005.

    Google Scholar 

  • McNulty, M. 1987. Pregnancy police: The health policy and legal implications of punishing women for harm to their fetuses. Review of Law and Social Change 16: 277–319.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merrick, J.C. 1993. Maternal substance abuse during pregnancy: Policy implications in the United States. The Journal of Legal Medicine 14: 57–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Michaelis, E.K., and M.L. Michaelis. 1994. Cellular and molecular bases of alcohol’s teratogenic effects. Alcohol Health & Research World 18(1): 17–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ministry of Justice, New Zealand. 2011. Youth Court, Issue 53. I, EP (1999). http://www.justice.govt.nz/courts/youth/publications-and-media/principal-youth-court ne. Accessed 17 June 2014.

  • Ministry of Justice, New Zealand. 2015. www.justice.govt.nz/publications. The NZ legal system.

  • Moore, T.E., and M. Green. 2004. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD): A need for closer examination by the criminal justice system. Criminal Reports 19: 99–108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moss, K. 1990. Substance abuse during pregnancy. Harvard Women’s Law Journal 12278–299.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oaks, L. 2001. Smoking and pregnancy: The politics of fetal protection. NJ: Rutgers University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oster, E. 2013. Expecting better: Why the conventional wisdom is wrong and what you really need to know. New York: The Penguin Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pollitt, K. 1990. ‘Fetal rights’, a new assault on feminism. Nation 250(12): 409–414.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paltrow, L.M. 1990. When becoming pregnant is a crime. Criminal Justice Ethics 9.

    Google Scholar 

  • Per Westman, H. 1993. Protection of the unborn child and the rights of parents. SvenskJuristTidning s 479.

    Google Scholar 

  • Post, L.F. 1996. Bioethical consideration of maternal-fetal issues. Fordham Urban Law Journal 24(4): Article 10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Priaulx, N. 2015. Pre(natal) crime: Pregnant women, substance abuse and the law. Medico-Legal Journal 83(1): 43–46.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roebuck, T.M., S.N. Mattson, and E.P. Riley. 1999. Prenatal alcohol exposure again linked to delinquency, psychiatric woes. Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research 23: 1070–1076.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. 1996. Guideline No.9: Alcohol consumption in pregnancy. London: Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

    Google Scholar 

  • S.A.F. Ocean Indien. 2014. http://www.safoceanindien.org./en/fetal-alcohol-syndrome/95-safoi-anglais/latest-news/200.

    Google Scholar 

  • Salmon, J.V. 2007. Fetal alcohol syndrome: New Zealand birth mothers’ experiences. Wellington, New Zealand: Dunmore Pubs.

    Google Scholar 

  • SAMHSA [The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration]. 2006. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and the criminal justice system. Washington, DC: US Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.fasdcenter.samhsa.gov/documents/WYNK_Criminal_Justice5.pdf.

  • Savulescu, J., and L. de Crespigny. 2014. Should it be a crime to harm an unborn child? The Conversation, 20/3/2014. Accessed 10 July 2014.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sayal, K., J. Heron, J. Golding, R. Alati, G.D. Smith, R. Gray, and A. Edmond. 2009. Binge pattern of alcohol consumption during pregnancy and childhood mental health outcomes: Longitudinal population-based study. Pediatrics 123: e289–e296.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schmidt, C., et al. 1990. A long-term perspective of FAS. Alcohol Health & Research World 18(1): 74–81.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schroedel, J.R. 2000. Is the fetus a person: A comparison of policies across the fifty states. Cornell: Cornell University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steinhausen, H.C., J. Williams, and H.L. Spohr. 1993. Long-term psychopathological and cognitive outcome of children with fetal alcohol syndrome. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 32: 990–994.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Social Security & Child Support Commissioners. 2013. http://www.osscsc.gov.uk/Aspx/view.aspx?id=4073. Accessed 10 July 2014.

  • Stratton, K., C. Howe, and F. Battaglia (eds.). 1996. Fetal alcohol syndrome: Diagnosis, epidemiology, prevention and treatment. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Streissguth, A.P., F. Bookstein, H.M. Barr, P.D. Sampson, K. O’Malley, and J.K. Young. 2004. Risk factors for adverse life outcomes in fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol effects. Journal of Developmental and Behavioural Pediatrics 25: 228–238.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • The Life Resources Charitable Trust. 2011. www.life.org.nz/rightsunbornchild.

  • Warren, M.A. 1989. The moral significance of birth. Hypatia 4(3): 46–65.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Webb, M.B. 2000. Policing pregnancy: The case of foetal exposure to alcohol. New Zealand: Litigation Dept., Russell McVeagh McKenzie Bartleet & Co.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhou, F. 2008. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders study group (FASDSG). http://www.rsoa.org/fas.html. Accessed 7 Aug 2014.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Research on Children & Families—Research Cluster, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand

    Jenny Salmon

Authors
  1. Jenny Salmon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jenny Salmon .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Consulting Psychology Associates, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

    Monty Nelson

  2. Office of the Ethics Commissioner, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

    Marguerite Trussler

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Salmon, J. (2016). Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: Ethical, Legal and Moral Implications Associated with the Rights of the Unborn Child. In: Nelson, M., Trussler, M. (eds) Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders in Adults: Ethical and Legal Perspectives. International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine, vol 63. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-20866-4_1

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation