HANFORD â As National Victimsâ Rights Week prepared to come to a close, families in Kings County embraced in sharing both their grief and fonder memories.
On Thursday evening, members of the community came to First Baptist Hanford to view quilts that are displayed annually. On each of them, viewers will see squares and patches representing the victims of homicide within the county.
Members of the community were welcome to visit throughout the day see the quilts, with the evening culminating in the invitation-only unveiling for 2019 and 2020. During the unveiling, Kings County District Attorney Keith Fagundes explained the history and importance Crime Victimsâ Awareness Week, along with what it means to be the victim of a crime.
Chelsea Becker of Hanford has remained in custody on $2 million bail since the 2019 stillbirth. Police say methamphetamine was found in the fetus and that Becker, who was 8½ months pregnant at the time of the stillbirth, acknowledged using the drug. Becker, 26, has pleaded not guilty. Supporters say substance use disorder is a medical condition, not a crime, and that there is not enough evidence to say methamphetamine use causes stillbirths.
Philip Esbenshade, executive assistant to Kings County District Attorney Keith Fagundes, said the law authorizes a murder charge for “the reckless or indifferent unlawful conduct of a mother that results in the unlawful death of her fetus.”
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) The California Supreme Court declined to stop the prosecution of a woman who was charged with murder after authorities said she used methamphetamine before her fetus was.
Updated: 12:46 PM PST Dec 24, 2020 The California Supreme Court declined Wednesday to stop the murder prosecution of a woman who had used methamphetamine and whose fetus was stillborn.In doing so, the court rejected a rare challenge by the state s attorney general, Xavier Becerra, whose office normally represents county prosecutors when their cases are appealed, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Thursday.But Becerra, tapped by President-elect Joe Biden to head the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is also a supporter of reproductive rights and in a letter to justices said that fear of prosecution may prevent pregnant women from seeking addiction services. The case could also prompt extra scrutiny by law enforcement on miscarriages and stillbirths, he said.Chelsea Becker of Hanford has been in jail on $2 billion bail since the September 2019 stillbirth. Police say methamphetamine was found in the fetus and that Becker, who was 8½ months pregnant at the time