Wrong rulings come from wrong science | Contraception and Reproductive Medicine

Although the US Supreme Court has ruled that scientific evidence is not a basis for judicial review, thinking people might want to consider the basis, logic, and clinical implications of such a decision.

The first issue is the problematic premise that a frozen embryo, or “extrauterine child” as Alabama coins them in this decision, is life. Life in its simple scientific definition (fond memories of high school biology, anyone? ) is a condition that separates that which can independently grow, develop, and reproduce from inorganic matter. Simply put, a frozen embryo is not life. This should not be controversial— it is clear, to these authors at the very least, that an embryo does not have any of these qualities of life outside of a uterus.

Putting that aside, a similar but distinct issue is the claim that “life” starts with fertilization. This case relies on legislation called the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act, which was first passed in 1872 Alabama. In his LePage ruling, the judge carefully listed factors that were considered when interpreting and applying this historic piece of legislation in his contemporary decision. Among those factors were the prevailing definitions and original public meanings at the time. As proof that the Act should apply to “unborn babies,” the judge quoted Webster’s dictionary from 1864 that “to be with child (means) to be pregnant.” However, this definition is irrelevant. The fact that humans arise from the union of egg and sperm was not recognized until decades later, after passage of the Act. When this dictionary was published, there was no understanding of human conception. In those days, pregnancy was usually confirmed by quickening in the second trimester. Although the judge in the LePage case cited “evidence of original public meaning” as being important in interpreting this piece of legislation, it is impossible that this knowledge was part of the intent of the original authors, as “fertilization” was not a meaningful term when the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act was passed.