Statements

Statement in Support of California AG’s Statewide Alert Regarding Legal Protections for Pregnant People

Remarks by Samantha Lee, Staff Attorney, as part of Attorney General Rob Bonta's press conference on 1/6/2022.

Thank you, Attorney General Bonta. My name is Samantha Lee and I am a staff attorney at National Advocates for Pregnant Women.

As an organization dedicated to advancing the civil and human rights of all people capable of pregnancy, National Advocates for Pregnant Women is honored to stand with Attorney General Bonta in support of this legal alert instructing district attorneys, police chiefs, and county sheriffs in California not to misuse the state’s murder statute to criminalize people for their pregnancy outcomes.

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National Advocates for Pregnant Women and NYCLU File Complaints on Behalf of Mothers Reported to Child Protective Services After Poppy Seed Consumption Caused False Positive Drug Test Results

Advocates call for end to discriminatory nonconsensual drug testing of pregnant people

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 17, 2021

ORANGE COUNTY – The New York Civil Liberties Union and National Advocates for Pregnant Women (NAPW) filed state Division of Human Rights (DHR) complaints on behalf of Crystal H. and Jane Doe, respectively, who were drug tested without consent when giving birth at Garnet Health Medical Center in Middletown, New York.

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Oklahoma Prosecution and Conviction of a Woman for Experiencing a Miscarriage is Shameful and Dangerous

On Tuesday, October 5, Brittney Poolaw, a 20-year-old Oklahoma woman, was convicted of manslaughter in the first degree for experiencing a miscarriage at 17 weeks and sentenced to 4 years in state prison.

Last year, Ms. Poolaw experienced a miscarriage and went to Comanche County Hospital for medical help.

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National Advocates for Pregnant Women Files Brief on Behalf of 45 Organizations, Experts, and Advocates, Including Actor Amy Schumer, in Support of Arizona Mother Found to Have Committed Child Neglect for Legally Using Medical Marijuana to Treat Hyperemesis Gravidarum During Her Pregnancy

Hyperemesis Gravidarum Is a Life-Threatening Pregnancy Condition

For Immediate Release: July 6, 2021

On Friday, July 1, National Advocates for Pregnant Women (NAPW), as lead amici, asked an Arizona Court of Appeals to accept their brief on behalf of 45 leading health organizations, doctors, ethicists, scientific and medical experts, and advocates, including Amy Schumer, in support of Lindsay R., a mother found guilty of civil child neglect and placed on Arizona’s Child Abuse Central Registry because she used medical marijuana while pregnant pursuant to a valid medical certification and suffered from acute hyperemesis gravidarum.

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NAPW Testimony Opposing Arizona’s SB 1457

On March 17, 2020, Lynn M. Paltrow, Founder and Executive Director of National Advocates for Pregnant Women, testified before the Arizona House Judiciary in opposition to Senate Bill 1457, which, among other things, would require that the Arizona constitution be construed to acknowledge, “on behalf of an unborn child at every stage of development, all rights, privileges, and immunities available to other persons, citizens and residents of this state.

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Chelsea Becker Is Released On Her Own Recognizance, But Not Yet Free

On March 9, 2021, Kings County Superior Court Judge Robert Shane Burns granted Chelsea Becker’s request to be released on her own recognizance so that she can enter a residential treatment facility, but her legal fight continues.

In 2019, Ms. Becker experienced a stillbirth, which Kings County District Attorney Keith L. Fagundes claims, without scientific basis, was caused by methamphetamine use.

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