By Debbie-Ann Wright—
Broadcaster Jody-Ann Gray says she is happy justice minister Senator Mark Golding is moving to seek justice for unborn children.
Gray was attacked by former co-worker, Wayne Whyte, and another man as she arrived home in Cedar Grove in Portmore, St Catherine on April 4, last year.
She was seven months’ pregnant with Whyte’s child at the time.
The justice minister recently told the Senate that he was actively considering how to deal with the murder of a pregnant woman and the rights of her unborn child.
There is currently no law in Jamaica to punish a pregnant woman’s killer for taking the life of her unborn child.
However, Golding says he is looking at whether Jamaica’s laws should be amended to that where a person is aware he is killing a pregnant woman there can be some penalty in relation to the unborn child.
Gray says she is elated to see that families in the future could get a chance to experience justice for not just the mother but also the unborn child whose opportunity to enter the world and make a contribution to society may have been taken away.
Gray says she never understood why her attackers were never charged for attempting to hurt her unborn child.
She says it broke her heart that her child was never even mentioned in court documents.
Gray says at seven months, her daughter could have survived on her own disclosing that the baby kicked vigorously and was very much alive the night she was shot.
Whyte was sentenced to 10 years in July on the charge of illegal possession of a firearm, five years for illegal possession of ammunition and 14 years for wounding with intent.
Whyte’s co-accused Safari Farr was also given a similar sentence.
The men pleaded guilty to the charges on June 26.
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