House File 99 - Introduced



                                  HOUSE FILE       
                                  BY  STRUYK, WINDSCHITL, FORRISTALL,
                                      SCHULTZ, ALONS, DRAKE, RAYHONS,
                                      HEATON, and HORBACH


    Passed House,  Date               Passed Senate, Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act establishing a child endangerment offense for the mother
  2    of a newborn child who caused an illegal drug to be present in
  3    the newborn child's body, and providing a penalty.
  4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  5 TLSB 1689YH 83
  6 jp/nh/5

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 726.6, subsection 1, Code 2009, is
  1  2 amended by adding the following new paragraph:
  1  3    NEW PARAGRAPH.  i.  By act or omission a newborn child's
  1  4 mother caused an illegal drug to be present in the newborn
  1  5 child's body and the drug's presence is a direct and
  1  6 foreseeable consequence of the act or omission.  Unless the
  1  7 presence of the illegal drug caused death or serious injury to
  1  8 the newborn child, the drug's presence shall be considered to
  1  9 have caused bodily injury to the newborn child.  For the
  1 10 purposes of this paragraph, "newborn child" means an infant
  1 11 who is three days of age or younger.
  1 12    Sec. 2.  Section 726.6, subsection 6, Code 2009, is amended
  1 13 to read as follows:
  1 14    6.  A person who commits child endangerment resulting in
  1 15 bodily injury to a child or minor or child endangerment in
  1 16 violation of subsection 1, paragraph "g" or "i", that does not
  1 17 result in a serious injury, is guilty of a class "D" felony.
  1 18                           EXPLANATION
  1 19    This bill provides a new child endangerment offense under
  1 20 Code section 726.6.  The new offense applies to an act or
  1 21 omission by the child's mother that caused an illegal drug to
  1 22 be present in the body of a newborn child as a direct and
  1 23 foreseeable consequence of the act or omission.  The term
  1 24 "newborn child" is defined to mean an infant who is three days
  1 25 of age or younger.  Unless the presence of the illegal drug
  1 26 caused death or serious injury to the newborn child, the
  1 27 drug's presence is considered to have caused bodily injury to
  1 28 the child.  A child endangerment offense that causes bodily
  1 29 injury to a child is punishable as a class "D" felony.
  1 30 LSB 1689YH 83
  1 31 jp/nh/5