Rachel Kuhn’s essay on the criminalization of pregnancy loss compares the legal proceedings of two women, who lived over two centuries apart. Kuhn argues that “Both women found themselves in a legal system willing to treat tragedy as evidence of criminality.” nursingclio.org/2026/07/29/p...
“Presumptive Testimony Only”: From Esther Davis to Patience Rousseau, Two Centuries of Criminalizing Pregnancy Loss
In summer 1802, a Baltimore jury convicted Esther Davis of murdering her newborn child. The newspapers that carried the story assured readers that the evidence against her was “clear and concise,” …
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