There is a case to be made that in the eventuality of a fatal abnormality the foetus may be considered not an “unborn” for the purposes of the eighth amendment, or that if considered an “unborn” then its right to life may be presumed unengaged as it has no real prospect of life outside the womb.
Should We Repeal the Eighth Amendment?
The tragic death of Savita Halappanavar in 2012 exposed the flaw in a system in which a therapeutic termination was a medical option, but where – for lack of legal clarification – the medical staff run the risk of a fourteen year custodial sentence.
Random Public Journal 