Eliminating the Parental Rights of Rapists

Sometimes things happen in the Maryland General Assembly that I just can’t believe. One of these unbelievable events was the quiet death of HB 428/SB 574 in a stacked conference committee of the 2017 session.

The proposal allowed a rape victim who conceived a child from the rape to terminate the parental rights of the rapist through court action if the rape can be proven. That certainly sounds reasonable to me. Why should a rape victim be forced to negotiate with her rapist on matters of adoption, visitation and other matters relating to the child? This is as insane as it is inhumane. The woman has been victimized in the cruelest way. Nevertheless, Maryland law can further victimize her by forcing her to deal with her rapist in matters concerning the child.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), of 34 states that have dealt legislatively with parental rights of rapists, at least 20 states allow for the termination of parental rights if the parent was convicted of sexual assault resulting in the birth of a child. Several states - Vermont, Wisconsin, and Oklahoma do not require a rape conviction to take away parental rights. The NCSL reports that various studies over the past twenty years estimate that between 17,000 and 32,000 rape-related pregnancies occur every year in the U. S.

It appears that on its ninth attempt to become law, the legislation, strongly approved by the House and the Senate, was sent to a conference committee to settle a small technical difference between the House and the Senate versions of the approved measure. It should be noted that not one single senator or delegate appointed to serve on the conference committee was female. For that, I believe there is no excuse.

A conference committee can be a dangerous thing. In this case, an opponent of the legislation can defeat the bill without it ever coming back for a vote. That is precisely what happened. But, those same members who may have wanted the bill defeated clearly did not anticipate the national press and media attention the failure to approve the bill would attract. This legislature, and the Maryland public as a whole, will no longer tolerate the suggestions and innuendoes that a woman who claims rape is looked at with skepticism. Sadly, the sentiment in past years when this legislation has failed has been, “if she has not been beaten and bloodied, then it must have been consensual.”

Yes, whether the bill's opponents like it or not, times have changed. It's about time they change in the Maryland General Assembly. The bill is certain to be re-introduced in the 2018 session. I am as confident as one can be that the bill allowing denial of parental rights for rapists will get the approval it has sought for ten years. I plan to co-sponsor this important, emergency legislation.