Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS): Drinking alcohol during pregnancy could be ruled a crime in the UK

UK Lawyers plan to take a test case to the UK Court of Appeal over claims that children harmed in the womb by their mother's drinking should receive compensation as victims of crime

Harming an unborn child by consuming alcohol during pregnancy could be classified as a crime in the UK, if an unusual legal challenge succeeds.

An English council is planning to go to the UK Court of Appeal in an attempt to secure criminal injuries compensation for a six-year-old girl who was born with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FAS) as a result of her mother’s drinking while she was in the womb.

A UK tribunal ruled in 2011 that the unnamed child had sustained personal injury “directly attributable to a crime of violence” and so was eligible for a payout.

Her mother, who drank “grossly excessive quantities of alcohol” during her pregnancy, was never convicted of any offence.

But she was alleged to have maliciously administered poison so as to endanger life or inflict grievous bodily harm, a crime under section 23 of the UK Offences Against the Person Act 1861.

However, the UK Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority challenged the judgment, and it was overturned in December 2013 by the upper tribunal of the UK Administrative Appeals Chamber.

Judge Howard Levenson found that there had been “administration of a poison or other destructive or noxious thing, so as thereby to inflict grievous bodily harm”.

However, he concluded that the girl was “not a person” in legal terms at the time because she was still a foetus.

The judge added: “I conclude that the section 23 offence cannot be committed by a pregnant woman drinking alcohol during her pregnancy and thereby causing damage to her unborn child and that, in the present case, no evidence or argument has been offered in respect of the commission of any other offence.”

Now the council in north-west England which brought the original application for compensation on behalf of the girl, who is now in foster care, is preparing to take the case to the UK Court of Appeal.

Neil Sugarman, a managing partner at GLP Solicitors in Greater Manchester, who is handling the case, told the paper: "Sadly, we act for many, many children who have been damaged by excessive alcohol intake during pregnancy.

We were approached by a local authority with responsibility for a child very badly damaged as a consequence of foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FAS).

“They considered making an application under the criminal injuries compensation scheme because they thought there was an argument that the child had been damaged by being victim of a crime. The crime being; the birth mother carrying on drinking knowing that it could damage the child.”

He added: "In all the cases we have, there is good evidence that warnings have been given either by social workers or treating consultants and nurses to say, 'you cannot go on doing this, you are going to damage your child'."

There is a history of similar cases being brought to the courts in the US but with limited success.

Listen to a spokeperson from the American Bar Association. This Podcast discusses what US legal representatives need to know about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Spectrum Disorder.

Foetal Alcohol Exposure affects childhood development

Children exposed to alcohol during fetal development exhibit changes in brain structure and metabolism that are visible using various imaging techniques, according to a new study being presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

Alcohol use by expectant mothers can lead to problems with the mental and physical development of their children—a condition known as fetal alcohol syndrome.

Research suggests an incidence of 0.2 to 1.5 per 1,000 live births, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Costs for care of individuals affected by fetal alcohol syndrome in the U.S. have been estimated at $4 billion annually.

Advancements in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are affording unprecedented insights into the effects of alcohol on the central nervous systems of children whose mothers drank alcohol during their pregnancy.

Recently, researchers in Poland used three different MRI techniques to better define these effects.

The study group included 200 children who were exposed to alcohol during their fetal stage and 30 children whose mothers did not drink while pregnant or during lactation.

Researchers used MRI to evaluate the size and shape of the corpus callosum, the bundle of nerve fibers that forms the major communication link between the right and left halves of the brain, in the two groups.

Prenatal alcohol exposure is the major cause of impaired development or complete absence of the corpus callosum.

The MRI results showed statistically significant thinning of the corpus callosum in the children exposed to alcohol compared with the other group.

“These changes are strongly associated with psychological problems in children,” said Andrzej Urbanik, M.D., chair of the Department of Radiology at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland.

Dr. Urbanik and colleagues also used diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) to study six areas of the central nervous system in the children. DWI maps the diffusion process of water and can be a more sensitive means than traditional MRI for detecting tissue abnormalities.

Children in the alcohol group exhibited statistically significant increases in diffusion on DWI compared with the other children.

“The increase of diffusion indicates neurological disorders or damage to the brain tissue,” Dr. Urbanik said.

To noninvasively study metabolism in the brains of the children, the researchers used proton (hydrogen) magnetic resonance spectroscopy (HMRS), a common adjunct to structural MRI studies. HMRS results showed a complex collection of metabolic changes.

“In individual cases, we found a high degree of metabolic changes that were specific for particular locations within the brain,” Dr. Urbanik said.

What is Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)

FASD - Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, is a term used to describe the range of birth defects, which can occur in a child whose mother drinks high levels of alcohol during pregnancy.

Currently in the UK, information and resources for supporting children affected by FASD, are very limited. The Sunfield Research Institute, in consultation with the National Organisation for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome UK (NOFAS-UK), have worked together to create a toolkit of resources which we hope will provide early years practitioners with the necessary knowledge and skills to support children who may have FASD.

Below are 4 Links to FASD information articles, in PDF format;
















Strategies for supporting children with FASD
















Information Sheets
















Case studies
















Things to Remember - Communicating with Children


Further information can also be found on the Sunfield website.