By Bassam Za'za', Senior Reporter
Dubai: In an unprecedented ruling, a court on Sunday convicted a mother of accidentally killing her foetus in a traffic accident, prompting a prosecutor to stress that the law preserves the right of foetuses to live.
The Dubai Traffic Court of First Instance fined the 27-year-old Lebanese woman Dh2,000 and ordered her to pay Dh20,000 in blood money for accidentally killing her nine-month-old foetus. The blood money is to be paid to the foetus's successors. A person has to pay 10 per cent of blood money for accidentally killing a foetus, according to Sharia. In the UAE, blood money amounts to Dh200,000.
Salah Bu Farousha, Head of the Traffic Public Prosecution, advised women in the third trimester of pregnancy to avoid driving except in cases of urgent need.
"We are trying to protect the foetuses' rights to live... that right is protected by law. Pregnant women who are about to deliver should protect theirs and their foetuses' lives and avoid driving as much as possible except in emergencies. The Federal Penal Code punishes any suspect who accidentally causes the death of an individual," Bu Farousha told Gulf News. He said he considered the foetus to be a life. Hence, the woman was prosecuted.
The fine was suspended for three years, during which the accused must not repeat the crime.
The woman said she was not at fault. Records said the nine-month-old female foetus died after the umbilical cord was cut.
Bu Farousha said they charged the woman with reckless driving and failing to keep a safe distance with the car ahead of her.
"We have laws which protect foetuses and yesterday's verdict should be a deterrent," he said.
"We ruled out any criminal intentions and concentrated on the mother's accidental error, recklessness and failure to keep a safe distance. We prosecuted the woman to protect the foetus's rights and because accidental killing is punishable by law."
Dubai: In an unprecedented ruling, a court on Sunday convicted a mother of accidentally killing her foetus in a traffic accident, prompting a prosecutor to stress that the law preserves the right of foetuses to live.
The Dubai Traffic Court of First Instance fined the 27-year-old Lebanese woman Dh2,000 and ordered her to pay Dh20,000 in blood money for accidentally killing her nine-month-old foetus. The blood money is to be paid to the foetus's successors. A person has to pay 10 per cent of blood money for accidentally killing a foetus, according to Sharia. In the UAE, blood money amounts to Dh200,000.
Salah Bu Farousha, Head of the Traffic Public Prosecution, advised women in the third trimester of pregnancy to avoid driving except in cases of urgent need.
"We are trying to protect the foetuses' rights to live... that right is protected by law. Pregnant women who are about to deliver should protect theirs and their foetuses' lives and avoid driving as much as possible except in emergencies. The Federal Penal Code punishes any suspect who accidentally causes the death of an individual," Bu Farousha told Gulf News. He said he considered the foetus to be a life. Hence, the woman was prosecuted.
The fine was suspended for three years, during which the accused must not repeat the crime.
The woman said she was not at fault. Records said the nine-month-old female foetus died after the umbilical cord was cut.
Bu Farousha said they charged the woman with reckless driving and failing to keep a safe distance with the car ahead of her.
"We have laws which protect foetuses and yesterday's verdict should be a deterrent," he said.
"We ruled out any criminal intentions and concentrated on the mother's accidental error, recklessness and failure to keep a safe distance. We prosecuted the woman to protect the foetus's rights and because accidental killing is punishable by law."
No comments:
Post a Comment