No Sex Sentence Unorthodox, Necessary

(Aired on June 28, 2010)

A woman who is accused of murdering her two newborn sons has been ordered not to have sex. This woman was released on $200,000 bail and court imposed 17 conditions on her. She is accused of two counts of second-degree murder. The body of her first son was found in 2009. The body of her second son has never been found. The court wants to avoid having her get pregnant again, and imposed the rather unheard of condition that she not have sex with anyone.

Safe sex is one thing, but no sex, that's something totally different. I haven't heard of it being imposed before, and I don't know how you would enforce it. The only telltale sign, of course, would be if she became pregnant again. She also can't be in the presence of her boyfriend unless someone else is around.

The B.C. Civil Liberties Association is concerned about the conditions, and they think it might be the start of a slippery slope. But I say to that, if indeed the charges against the woman are true, and she is convicted of killing her newborns, where do the child's civil liberties get exercised as opposed to the mother's? It might well be a slippery slope, but sometimes you have to travel down these slopes for the greater good. No one wants to see civil liberties denied, but is the Civil Liberties Association suggesting that murder is a better option?

As this case plays out, the facts will become more evident, and we'll get a better picture of what happened. In the meantime, I really don't think it's unreasonable to have the woman's rights curtailed somewhat until due process is done.