The mother has admitted to smoking up to two packs of cigarettes a day for the first fifteen weeks of the pregnancy as well as using cocaine the first six weeks. Don't get me wrong. The fact that the mother is in recovery for her crack addiction is fantastic and I applaud her strength and courage at facing her addiction. Her past should not be used against her in terms of her character, but it most certainly can't be ignored either as a contributing or even primary cause for the premature labor. If in fact the defendent was drunk, he should be convicted of drunk driving.
Pregnancy is, at best, a very risky experience for both mother and child.
After much soul-searching, I finally came to the conclusion that there's no way I'll ever be able to know why it happened. Or what, if anything, I could have done to prevent it. I have known women who have had a wonderful pregnancy from day one. Have had excellent medical care, eaten properly, exercised in moderation, did everything they possibly could to insure that they gave their child the best possible start in life. On the other hand, I've seen women who smoke every day of their pregnancy, who drink alcohol, don't exercise, miss doctor's appointments, eat lots of junk food, have high-risk pregnancies full of complications and have perfectly healthy babies.