Henry L. Peckham, Jr. v. United States

Appellant was convicted on an indictment charging that on or about May 2, 1951, he used instruments upon and administered drugs to a named woman, then pregnant, with intent to procure her miscarriage. His chief, though not his only, contention on this appeal is that the District Court erred in instructing the jury that it was immaterial whether or not the woman was pregnant, if at the time the defendant believed she was pregnant.

If the statute makes pregnancy immaterial, the indictment cannot make it material. The government’s brief contains a table showing that the so-called abortion…