HB518 Alabama 2025 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Ernie YarbroughRepresentative

Republican

Session

2025 Regular Session

Title

Unborn children; defined from the moment of fertilization for purposes of certain criminal prosecution, prosecutions for murder and assault of unborn child authorized and further provided for, defense of duress authorized for woman charged with death of her own child

Summary

HB518 would treat unborn children from fertilization as equal to born people for homicide and assault prosecutions in Alabama, remove previous protections for pregnant women and abortions, and set specific duress defenses and life-saving exceptions.

What This Bill Does

It creates the Prenatal Equal Protection Act, defining an unborn child from fertilization and allowing homicide or assault prosecutions for injuries or deaths of the unborn child, with exceptions for life-saving measures for the mother and for spontaneous miscarriages. It removes exemptions that protected deaths or injuries to unborn children caused by medication or medical care when performed by a licensed provider and removes a prohibition on prosecuting a woman for homicide or assault of her own unborn child or for abortion. It invites a duress defense in murder cases but makes the defense unavailable when the victim is an unborn child and the defendant is the child's mother, and it requires unborn-child prosecutions to be treated the same as those for born individuals. Prosecutors (district attorneys and the Attorney General) would share authority to pursue these cases, and the changes apply to conduct occurring on or after the act’s effective date.

Who It Affects

• Unborn children who are protected as victims from fertilization onward and could be the focus of homicide or assault prosecutions, with limited exceptions for life-saving actions and spontaneous miscarriage.
• Pregnant women (mothers) and licensed health care providers, who could face homicide or assault charges for actions affecting an unborn child, with specific duress defense changes and removal of prior protections, and with concurrent prosecutorial authority shared between district attorneys and the Attorney General.

Key Provisions

• Creates the Prenatal Equal Protection Act and defines unborn from the moment of fertilization.
• Authorizes prosecutions for homicide or assault of an unborn child at any developmental stage, with exceptions for life-saving measures for the mother and spontaneous miscarriage.
• Removes exemptions that protected the death or injury of an unborn child caused by medication or medical care provided to a pregnant woman by a licensed health care provider, and removes prohibitions on prosecuting a woman for homicide or assault of her own unborn child or for abortion.
• Authorizes duress as a defense to murder in general, but makes the defense unavailable in prosecutions where the victim is an unborn child and the defendant is the child’s mother (in murder or aggravated killings).
• Requires prosecutions involving an unborn child to be treated the same as prosecutions involving a born person; assigns concurrent authority to district attorneys and the Attorney General.
• Defines key terms (fertilization, unborn child, spontaneous miscarriage, etc.) and clarifies that the changes apply to conduct after the act’s effective date.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Crimes & Offenses