North Dakota Code 12.1-17.1-02 – Murder of an unborn child
1. A person is guilty of murder of an unborn child, a class AA felony, if the person:
Attorney's Note
Under the North Dakota Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Class AA felony | up to life | |
| Class A felony | up to 20 years | up to $20,000 |
Terms Used In North Dakota Code 12.1-17.1-02
- Bodily injury: means any impairment of physical condition, including physical pain. See North Dakota Code 12.1-01-04
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Destructive device: means any explosive, incendiary or poison gas bomb, grenade, mine, rocket, missile, or similar device. See North Dakota Code 12.1-01-04
- Firearm: means any weapon that will expel, or is readily capable of expelling, a projectile by the action of an explosive and includes any such weapon, loaded or unloaded, commonly referred to as a pistol, revolver, rifle, gun, machine gun, shotgun, bazooka, or cannon. See North Dakota Code 12.1-01-04
- person: includes , where relevant, a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, unincorporated association, or other legal entity. See North Dakota Code 12.1-01-04
- Serious bodily injury: means bodily injury that creates a substantial risk of death or which causes serious permanent disfigurement, unconsciousness, extreme pain, permanent loss or impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ, a bone fracture, or impediment of air flow or blood flow to the brain or lungs. See North Dakota Code 12.1-01-04
a. Intentionally or knowingly causes the death of an unborn child; b. Causes the death of an unborn child under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of the life of the unborn child or the pregnant woman; or
c. Acting either alone or with one or more other persons, commits or attempts to commit treason, robbery, burglary, kidnapping, felonious restraint, arson, gross sexual imposition, or escape and, in the course of and in furtherance of such crime or of immediate flight therefrom, the person, or another participant, if any, causes the death of an unborn child; except that in any prosecution under this subsection in which the defendant was not the only participant in the underlying crime, it is an affirmative defense that the defendant:
(1) Did not commit the homicidal act or in any way solicit, command, induce, procure, counsel, or aid the commission thereof; (2) Was not armed with a firearm, destructive device, dangerous weapon, or other weapon that under the circumstances indicated a readiness to inflict serious bodily injury; (3) Reasonably believed that no other participant was armed with such a weapon; and
(4) Reasonably believed that no other participant intended to engage in conduct likely to result in death or serious bodily injury.
Subdivisions a and b are inapplicable in the circumstances covered by subsection 2.
2. A person is guilty of murder of an unborn child, a class A felony, if the person causes the death of an unborn child under circumstances which would be class AA murder, except that the person causes the death of the unborn child under the influence of extreme emotional disturbance for which there is reasonable excuse. The reasonableness of the excuse must be determined from the viewpoint of a person in the person’s situation under the circumstances as the person believes them to be. An extreme emotional disturbance is excusable, within the meaning of this subsection only, if it is occasioned by substantial provocation or a serious event or situation for which the offender was not culpably responsible.