WI · jury_instructions
Wis JI-Criminal 1171
Homicide of an Unborn Child by Negligent Operation of a Vehicle
Statutory Definition of the Crime
Homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle, as defined in § 940.10(2) of the Criminal
Code of Wisconsin, is committed by one who causes the death of an unborn child by the
negligent operation or handling of a vehicle.
State's Burden of Proof
Before you may find the defendant guilty of this offense, the State must prove by
evidence which satisfies you beyond a reasonable doubt that the following three elements
were present.
Elements of the Crime that the State Must Prove
1. The defendant operated 1 a vehicle. 2
2. The defendant operated a vehicle in a manner constituting criminal negligence.
"Criminal negligence" means:
• the defendant's operation of a vehicle created a risk of death or great bodily
harm to [an unborn child] [(or) to the woman who is pregnant with the
unborn child] [(or) to another]; and
• the risk of death or great bodily harm was unreasonable and substantial; and
• the defendant should have been aware that (his) (her) operation of a vehicle
created the unreasonable and substantial risk of death or great bodily harm.3
3. The defendant's operation of the vehicle in a manner amounting to criminal
negligence caused the death of an unborn child.
"Cause" means that criminal negligence by the defendant was a substantial
factor in producing the death. 4
"Unborn child" means any individual of the human species from fertilization
until birth that is gestating inside a woman. 5
Jury's Decision
If you are satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant operated a vehicle in a
manner constituting criminal negligence and that the defendant's criminal negligence caused
the death of an unborn child, you should find the defendant guilty.
If you are not so satisfied, you must find the defendant not guilty.
History
Wis JI-Criminal 1171 (2005). Release No. 43, 5/2005. © 2005, Regents, Univ. of Wis. Prepared by the Wisconsin Criminal Jury Instructions Committee of the Wisconsin Judicial Conference with the University of Wisconsin Law School; posted by the Wisconsin State Law Library with the University's permission.
Provenance
- Source
- wilawlibrary.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-24
- Edition
- 2026-09-24
- Content hash
0ec167ea4eb6e68187dc499ec1a68de2e25c6549581a9a254ada94fcb431f331
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