No Abortion Money

WISCONSIN RIGHT TO LIFE, Oct. 11—Bills have been introduced in both houses of the Wisconsin legislature that would cut off state tax dollars from organizations that engage in abortion-related activities.

Wisconsin Right to Life said organizations “will have a choice to make … either stop all abortion-related activities or the state funds they currently receive will be diverted to organizations that do not engage in abortion-related activities.”

A recent Wirthlin poll shows 82% of Wisconsin residents are opposed to tax dollars supporting abortion.

Fetuses in Auto Deaths

ASSOCIATED PRESS, Oct. 11—A Kentucky man, originally charged with double murder in the traffic death of a pregnant woman and her unborn child, pleaded guilty Oct. 11 to reduced charges of two counts of second-degree manslaughter, the wire service reported.

Pike Circuit Judge Charles Lowe let stand a homicide charge against Charles Morris in the death of the baby, who was nearly full term. Morris, however, is allowed to appeal the charge.

Others have been charged with murder in Kentucky in the deaths of unborn children, but the state Supreme Court has so far ruled that even a viable fetus is not a human being.

Court Bars Suicide Bid

ASSOCIATED PRESS, Oct. 18—A terminally ill woman immobilized by a neurological disease lost a British High Court battle to protect her husband from prosecution if he helps her die.

The three judges who rejected Diane Pretty's plea were “desperately sorry for her and her husband and family,” said one of the justices.

Diane Pretty, 42, is paralyzed from the neck down by motor neurone disease and is confined to a wheelchair. The judges acknowledged that her condition will worsen and that death was not far off.

The decision upheld Britain's law against assisted suicide, which calls for up to 14 years in jail for those who help someone commit suicide.

More Ethical Stem Cells

PR NEWSIRE, Oct. 10—Thermo-Genesis Corp., a company which specializes in preserving blood components, announced it had received a fifth order for its BioArchive System from the New York Blood Center's placental blood program. The New York program has pioneered the use of placental cord blood as a source of stem cells for bone marrow restoration for leukemia and other diseases of the blood and immune systems.

Philip Coelho of ThermoGenesis said, “Cord blood may provide a source of stem cells for tissue regeneration without the ethical issues involved with embryos or fetuses.”