Man arrested for tricking girlfriend into taking abortion pill

[PosthumanHeresy]

Read the story here


This guy, whose father is a doctor, faked his father's signature to get the abortion pill, and then changed the label to an antibiotic. He tricked his pregnant girlfriend into taking it, and it aborted the pregnancy. This guy is a pile of shit. But, he's being charged of the murder of the fetus. So, that's why I'm posting this (and posting it in the politics section). Should he be able to be charged with murder, or should it be a different crime to cause an abortion, as abortion is legal? Oh, and, it's Florida. Make of that what you will.

EDIT: Found tons more info. The fetus was seven weeks old, and he is facing MANDATORY life in prison under a federal law called the Unborn Victims of Violence Act. He's also being charged with product tampering, and being investigated for mail fraud and witness tampering. The best part? This slimeball got not his main girlfriend of many years pregnant, but his second, more recent one. Yep, he had two. And, even better, he specifically did this to keep it secret from #1. The formerly pregnant girl is a fundie, by the way.

On March 23, Lee sent Welden a text message about the unborn baby: "I thought of a nice name for whatever it is. Memphis Remington Welden. Kids gonna be a bad ass!"

Welden responded: "Oh God I want to die … Are you serious Remee please don't do this I beg you"

"Don't do what?" she texted back. "Take responsibility for my actions? This isn't about us anymore. It is not it's fault, why should it have to die? You must not be who I thought you were if you are asking me to murder our child."

"I can't I hate myself now," he responded. "Fine I can't do this I am destroyed."

Later on, this conversation was had

In the recorded conversation, Lee tells Welden she didn't want to force a relationship on him. "If you wanted to go be with Tara, that's fine," she says, according to a transcript excerpted in the prosecution pleading. "Go be with Tara. I woulda had my kid and I woulda been fine with that … I woulda told my parents it was someone else's. I wouldn't have bothered you for money. I wouldn't have bothered you at all."

"I didn't want to be that guy" who doesn't care, Welden responds.

"So you're going to be the guy that goes and just kills the baby without even letting me know?" Lee said. "To save your own precious hide? Right?"

"I guess," Welden said. "If I saved anything I didn't really save anything."

So, yeah, she knew about his other girlfriend the whole time. Still, this guy is even bigger scum than I thought initially.

[Witchyjoshy]

On one hand, the charges are bullshit.

On the other hand, what this guy did was deceive his girlfriend into taking a drug that was unknown to her and altered her body chemistry to cause harm to a part of her body (even if that part was the fetus).  I'm pretty sure that it should be the same charge as whatever "attempting to poison someone" falls under.

Regardless of the charges, I hope this guy either goes to jail or has to do a hefty amount of community service.  OR both.

[PosthumanHeresy]

On one hand, the charges are bullshit.

On the other hand, what this guy did was deceive his girlfriend into taking a drug that was unknown to her and altered her body chemistry to cause harm to a part of her body (even if that part was the fetus).  I'm pretty sure that it should be the same charge as whatever "attempting to poison someone" falls under.

Regardless of the charges, I hope this guy either goes to jail or has to do a hefty amount of community service.  OR both.

I doubt the charges will go away, so he is facing First Degree Murder with a chance for life in prison. And, I fixed the URL. I keep getting it mixed with the Spoiler-text method of making it more than just a URL/spoiler.

Edit: he's also facing product tampering. However, I do not know the age of the fetus. If it was, say, 7 or 8 months, I'd be fine with the charges.

Edit 2: According to the Orlando Sentinel, it's even worse. I'll edit the main page. And, the thing was 7 weeks.

[Stormwarden]

He tricked his pregnant girlfriend into taking an abortion pill, and conduced the abortion. What a sack of shit. I don't agree with murder 1 in this case, depending on the age of the fetus. Voluntary manslaughter, murder 2, would be what I would roll with.

[PosthumanHeresy]

He tricked his pregnant girlfriend into taking an abortion pill, and conduced the abortion. What a sack of shit. I don't agree with murder 1 in this case, depending on the age of the fetus. Voluntary manslaughter, murder 2, would be what I would roll with.

The fetus was seven weeks. It was a ball of cells.

[erictheblue]

Some states (I know VA is one*) have laws that specifically differentiate between a willing abortion and killing a viable embryo/fetus by willful or negligent action. As it is 4AM at the moment, I'm not going to look to see if FL has such a law. (I'll look later.) If so, that may explain the first degree murder charge.


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The law actually came up in my interview earlier this week. The interviewer asked "There is a DUI and the driver kills a 9-months pregnant woman and her viable, to be delivered by C-section in two days, fetus. One murder charge or two?" Without missing a beat, I said "I know Virginia has a law about that circumstance, but off the top of my head, I don't remember the exact details." She stopped me there and explained she asks that question, not to find out if the candidate knows the law, but to see how they answer. I suspect I answered correctly because my answer was basically "whatever the law says."

[PosthumanHeresy]

Some states (I know VA is one*) have laws that specifically differentiate between a willing abortion and killing a viable embryo/fetus by willful or negligent action. As it is 4AM at the moment, I'm not going to look to see if FL has such a law. (I'll look later.) If so, that may explain the first degree murder charge.


*

(click to show/hide)

The law actually came up in my interview earlier this week. The interviewer asked "There is a DUI and the driver kills a 9-months pregnant woman and her viable, to be delivered by C-section in two days, fetus. One murder charge or two?" Without missing a beat, I said "I know Virginia has a law about that circumstance, but off the top of my head, I don't remember the exact details." She stopped me there and explained she asks that question, not to find out if the candidate knows the law, but to see how they answer. I suspect I answered correctly because my answer was basically "whatever the law says."

It's a federal law, the one I cited("he is facing MANDATORY life in prison under a federal law called the Unborn Victims of Violence Act"). So, he's being charged under that. And, your interview? I'm curious here.

[Lt. Fred]

The kid committed a crime. He basically drugged his girfriend. That's a serious offence- he took control over her body away from her, just as Republican policy-makers want to do. Throw him in jail for a year, or give him a longer suspended sentence.

[PosthumanHeresy]

The kid committed a crime. He basically drugged his girfriend. That's a serious offence- he took control over her body away from her, just as Republican policy-makers want to do. Throw him in jail for a year, or give him a longer suspended sentence.

I agree, he drugged her and that's horrible. He didn't murder anything. A 7 week old fetus is literally dumber than a virus.

[MadmanJohnson]

The fetus is a clump of cells at but it's still manslaughter. Charge the asshat with that and be done with it.

[MrsYoungie]

It stops being a "clump of cells" the moment the mother decides she is going through with the pregnancy.
A woman's choice is just that.  HER choice.  I'm sorry that this guy didn't want to be a father.  But if we are pro-choice we have to be totally pro-choice.
He is a scum bag.  She is a bit stupid.  But scumbag is much much worse.
I do agree that murder charge is a bit OTT.  But he needs to face some kind of criminal charges.

[PosthumanHeresy]

It stops being a "clump of cells" the moment the mother decides she is going through with the pregnancy.
A woman's choice is just that.  HER choice.  I'm sorry that this guy didn't want to be a father.  But if we are pro-choice we have to be totally pro-choice.
He is a scum bag.  She is a bit stupid.  But scumbag is much much worse.
I do agree that murder charge is a bit OTT.  But he needs to face some kind of criminal charges.

It might be a future baby, but it is a clump of cells. He's a cockwagon, and she's an idiot, and the murder charge is insane. He does need criminal charges, but not for murder.

[MadmanJohnson]

Is there precedent for this?

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I'm going to laugh my ass off at this argument.

[PosthumanHeresy]

Is there precedent for this?

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I'm going to laugh my ass off at this argument.

Well, IIRC, people have been convicted of murder for killing a fetus in a car crash. I'm gonna go google the law.

EDIT: Straight outta Wikipedia: The Unborn Victims of Violence Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-212) is a United States law which recognizes a child in utero as a legal victim, if he or she is injured or killed during the commission of any of over 60 listed federal crimes of violence. The law defines "child in utero" as "a member of the species Homo sapiens, at any stage of development, who is carried in the womb".

EDIT 2: I'm not sure if this law applies, even though the news says it does, because it only applies in Federal courts. However, 34, iirc, states have the same exact law. I do not know if Florida is one of them.

[MadmanJohnson]

YOU SOLD HER BABY EARS FOR 75 DOLLARS! I DAMN YOU TO HELL? Bet you won't get that reference.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVlkZVAw8Gc" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVlkZVAw8Gc</a>