When Refusing Medical Treatment Goes Too Far

In Utah, a woman has been charged with murder for failing to have a Caesarean section while carrying twins. When the children were born two days later, one was dead. Utah authorities charge that the woman refused the C-section for purely cosmetic reasons (didn't want the big scar, apparently) and her vanity cost one of her children his or her life.

While the mother in this case doesn't seem to be the most sympathetic person in the world (just look at that picture), this may set a dangerous precedent. Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that the motivation for refusing the C-section was more substantial. Instead of cosmetic reasons, what if the mother was a Christian Scientist and the operation would violate a basic tenet of her faith. For her, it would be a Hobson's Choice scenario -- let the baby die or perform an act which would damn her soul for eternity. If that was the background of the decision, would a murder charge be proper?

I'm not sure. Murder is traditionally defined as a heinous malicious act. Whatever the motivation behind a decision like this, it's far from heinous and malicious. Negligent, certainly. Reckless, probably. But should that be enough?