The Hawai'i Supreme Court on Tuesday overturned a manslaughter conviction that said women can be prosecuted for the death of their children because of potentially harmful conduct while pregnant.
 
Specifically, two years ago a lower court claimed that Tayshea Aiwohi's use of methamphetamine during pregnancy was the cause of her infant's death and that pregnancy and drug use can be punished as murder.
 
After Aiwohi was convicted, over 60 groups, including the Drug Policy Alliance, filed an amicus (friend-of-the-court) brief in the case. They asked that the conviction be overturned, expressing concern that the precedent it set would discourage pregnant women from seeking prenatal care or substance abuse treatment for fear of being arrested. The brief drew largely from legal briefs submitted by the Alliance in prior cases around the country raising similar issues.
 
Aiwohi's lawyer, Todd Eddins, also pointed out that upholding the conviction would have opened the way for prosecution of women for other behaviors that are arguably risky during pregnancy, such as smoking cigarettes or drinking coffee.
 
The prosecution of Ms. Aiwohi was the first of its kind in Hawai’i; after the state Supreme Court’s ruling the law in Hawai’i now prohibits such prosecutions of mothers for potentially harmful conduct while pregnant. The Justices noted that the overwhelming majority of courts across the country have refused to uphold criminal convictions for mothers' prenatal conduct.

The ruling is available on the Hawai'i State Judiciary website.