About the bill
The Unborn Victims of Violence Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-212) is a United States law which recognizes an embryo or fetus in utero as a legal victim, if they are injured or killed during the commission of any of over 60 listed federal crimes of violence. The law defines "child in utero" as "a member of the species Homo sapiens, at any stage of development, who is carried in the womb".
The law is codified in two sections of the United States Code: Title 18, Chapter 1 (Crimes), §1841 (18 USC 1841) and Title 10, Chapter 22 (Uniform Code of Military Justice) §919a (Article 119a).
The law applies only to certain offenses over which the United States government has jurisdiction, including certain crimes committed on federal properties, against certain ...
Sponsor and status
108th Congress (2003–2004)
Enacted — Signed by the President on Apr 1, 2004
This bill was enacted after being signed by the President on April 1, 2004.
Position statements
What legislators are saying
“Lofgren Amendment Deters and Punishes Violent Acts Against Pregnant Women Without Interjecting the A”
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Rep. Zoe Lofgren [D-CA19]
on Feb 26, 2004
“senator Inhofe lauds passage of legislation protecting the rights of the unborn”
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Sen. James “Jim” Inhofe [R-OK]
on Mar 25, 2004
“Presidente Firma Ley Para Proteger Victimas De Violencia No Nacidas”
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Sen. John Cornyn [R-TX]
on Apr 5, 2004
History
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May 7, 2003
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Introduced
Bills and resolutions are referred to committees which debate the bill before possibly sending it on to the whole chamber. |
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Jan 21, 2004
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Ordered Reported
A committee has voted to issue a report to the full chamber recommending that the bill be considered further. Only about 1 in 4 bills are reported out of committee. |
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Feb 25, 2004
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Rules Change —
Agreed To
This activity took place on a related bill, H.Res. 529 (108th). |
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Feb 26, 2004
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Passed House (Senate next)
The bill was passed in a vote in the House. It goes to the Senate next. |
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Mar 25, 2004
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Passed Senate
The bill was passed by both chambers in identical form. It goes to the President next who may sign or veto the bill. |
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Apr 1, 2004
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Enacted — Signed by the President
The President signed the bill and it became law.
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H.R. 1997 (108th) was a bill in the United States Congress.
A bill must be passed by both the House and Senate in identical form and then be signed by the President to become law.
Bills numbers restart every two years. That means there are other bills with the number H.R. 1997. This is the one from the 108th Congress.
This bill was introduced in the 108th Congress, which met from Jan 7, 2003 to Dec 9, 2004. Legislation not enacted by the end of a Congress is cleared from the books.
How to cite this information.
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“H.R. 1997 — 108th Congress: Laci and Conner’s Law.” www.GovTrack.us. 2003. December 2, 2020 <https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/108/hr1997>
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Where is this information from?
GovTrack automatically collects legislative information from a variety of governmental and non-governmental sources. This page is sourced primarily from Congress.gov, the official portal of the United States Congress. Congress.gov is generally updated one day after events occur, and so legislative activity shown here may be one day behind. Data via the congress project.
