Bill: California AB 2223

Author: Asm. Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland)

Position: Opposed

Summary: Provides Legal Protections for Infanticide

Status 4/5/22: Passed out of Assembly Judiciary Committee, Referred to Assembly Health Committee

AB 2223 was recently amended and further confirmed it’s fate as a threat to newborn babies across California. This bill will protect participating parties from being criminally liable or penalized for an “alleged pregnancy outcome, including a miscarriage, stillbirth, or abortion, or perinatal death.”  This means the death of a child weeks or months after the child is born. 

According to the bill text, women and anyone who “aids and assists” a person in exercising abortion will be protected from civil or criminal charges related to the termination of their pregnancy, which includes perinatal death.  The term “perinatal” is defined as the time period within a pregnancy between 22 weeks and 7 days post-birth.  In order to cover all bases, A.B. 2223 would prohibit a coroner from cooperating with judicial inquiries regarding the death of the baby, barring the use of “the coroner’s statements on the certificate of fetal death to establish, bring, or support a criminal prosecution or civil cause of damages against any person.”