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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, July 8, 2005

Reversal in Aiwohi case makes sense


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REVERSAL IN AIWOHI

The intervention of a national drug-treatment coalition in the case of Tayshea Aiwohi gives Hawai'i a welcome opportunity to rethink the policy behind her prosecution.

Aiwohi was 31 when she pleaded no contest to manslaughter in connection with the death of her newborn son three years earlier. Allegedly, it was Aiwohi's use of crystal methamphetamine that poisoned the infant; last August, she was sentenced to 10 years' probation.

Prosecutors hope that the felony charges will deter pregnant women from endangering the lives of their children. It's easy to sympathize with their intent, but the reality is wholly different. No local data have been compiled to demonstrate the impact of the Aiwohi conviction on the number of pregnant drug-users seeking prenatal care. But if the local experience is anything like that of South Carolina — and there's no reason to think it would be much different — the effect will be chilling.

Since the high-profile case of Cornelia Whitner was prosecuted and upheld by the South Carolina Supreme Court in 1996, drug-treatment programs that focus on pregnant women have experienced drastic declines in enrollment.

This can't be good for the health of either the women or the fetuses they're carrying. Will the state begin pursuing diabetic mothers who fail to monitor their glucose levels, or those who drink during pregnancy?

The University of Hawai'i medical school and state officials are discussing plans for a special clinic providing prenatal care to pregnant women who have substance-abuse problems. This would be a wonderful development, if funding can be found.

The coalition intervening in the Aiwohi case, the National Advocates for Pregnant Women, is pursuing a worthy cause in asking Hawai'i's high court to overturn the conviction. Without an about-face in this prosecutorial policy, a clinic to help pregnant women with drug-abuse problems may open here with few women willing to show up at the door.