Sleeping foetus?--Medicolegal consideration of an incredibly prolonged gestational period.
In Libya, sexual intercourse between an unmarried couple is unlawful even if it was consensual. The defendant in this case pleaded not guilty to the charge despite the fact that she delivered a baby 29 months after divorce. She imputed paternity of the child to her ex-husband, who denied the allegation on the grounds of the extremely long gestational period. Her claim was that the baby was conceived three months prior to divorce, but had ceased to grow for some time. Her plea was based on the widely accepted notion amongst lay people, the so-called 'sleeping foetus'. Following the medical opinion, the court dismissed the plea and the woman was convicted of unlawful sexual intercourse.
Benomran
F A
FA
Al-Arab Medical University, Forensic Medicine Department, Benghazi, Libya.
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005554:Forensic Medicine; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007514:Islam; D008002:Libya; D010334:Paternity; D011247:Pregnancy; D011273:Pregnancy, Prolonged; D012068:Religion and Medicine