A divorced couple is fighting over the future of three frozen embryos and the Texas Supreme Court is being asked to decide whether the embryos are community property or life that should be protected by law.
Randy and Augusta Romans divorced in 2002. He wants the embryos destroyed, she wants them implanted. If the court does not take action, the embryos will likely remain frozen.
David Prentice, senior fellow for life sciences at the Family Research Council, said one item the court will likely not be able to consider is what’s best for the embryos.
“Under Texas law, these embryos aren’t recognized as persons, just as pieces of property," he told Family News in Focus.
Bruce Hausknecht, judicial analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said the court can only operate within the framework laid down by the Legislature.
“In this case, it’s not that the courts have bypassed their responsibility," he said. "They need direction from the Legislature – from the people. The people control the definition of life.”
Only Louisiana has a law that recognizes the personhood of a frozen embryo.
“All 50 states should do what Louisiana has done," Hausknecht said. "Define an embryo as a legal person.”
Jonathan Saenz, legislative director for the Free Market Foundation in Texas, said very clear language in the law is what's needed to defend against such challenges.
“Human life is under attack in so many ways," he said. "It’s unfortunate that you have to spell out so specifically in law things that I think people realize and have generally accepted, but that’s what we’ve come to.”
