Minnesota Statutes

Minn. Stat. § 609.2662 (2026)

Murder Of Unborn Child In The Second Degree

✓ current as of May 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section MN-REVrevisor.mn.gov (official) Justiaon Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

Whoever does either of the following is guilty of murder of an unborn child in the second degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 40 years:

(1) causes the death of an unborn child with intent to effect the death of that unborn child or another, but without premeditation; or

(2) causes the death of an unborn child, without intent to effect the death of any unborn child or person, while committing or attempting to commit a felony offense other than criminal sexual conduct in the first or second degree with force or violence.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 6 cases, 1990–2011 · leading case: State v. Merrill, 450 N.W.2d 318 (Minn. 1990).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

State v. Merrill, 450 N.W.2d 318 (Minn. 1990). · cites it 12× “[2] Minn.Stat. § 609.2662 (1988), provides in part: Whoever does either of the following is guilty of murder of an unborn child in the second degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 40 years: (1) causes the death of an unborn child with intent to effect the…”

State v. Noble, 669 N.W.2d 915 (Minn. Ct. App. 2003). · cites it 4× “34 (1999), which in turn are based on the language of Minn. Stat. § 609.2662 (1) (2000). At trial, Noble objected to the use of the phrases “or another” and “or another person,” claiming that the doctrine of transferred intent does not apply in the context of attempts.”

State v. Petersen, 799 N.W.2d 653 (Minn. Ct. App. 2011). · cites it 3× “Minn.Stat. § 609.2662 (2006) states that a person “is guilty of murder of an unborn child in the second degree” if the person “causes the death of an unborn child with intent to effect the death of that unborn child or another, but without premeditation.”

State v. Courchesne, 998 A.2d 1 (Conn. 2010). “2661 (1988) with Minn. Stat. § 609.2662 (1988). Indeed, as the majority itself acknowledges, the expanded two-prong definition of life, and conversely, death, already had been applied in the bom alive rule context six years prior to the defendant’s trial.”

State v. Bauer, 471 N.W.2d 363 (Minn. Ct. App. 1991). · cites it 4× “Minn. Stat. § 609.2662 (up to 40 years). In 1987, the presumptive sentence for this offense was 54 months, six months less than the sentence Bauer received.”

State v. Chao Yang, 533 N.W.2d 81 (Minn. Ct. App. 1995). · cites it 4× “Appellant was convicted under Minn. Stat. § 609.2662 (1992), which provides that a person is guilty of second degree murder of an unborn child if he causes the death of an unborn child with intent to effect the death of that unborn child or another, but without premeditation.”

— Minn. Stat. § 609.2662(1) — 2 cases

State v. Merrill, 450 N.W.2d 318 (Minn. 1990). “[2] Minn.Stat. § 609.2662 (1988), provides in part: Whoever does either of the following is guilty of murder of an unborn child in the second degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 40 years: (1) causes the death of an unborn child with intent to effect the…”

State v. Noble, 669 N.W.2d 915 (Minn. Ct. App. 2003). “34 (1999), which in turn are based on the language of Minn. Stat. § 609.2662 (1) (2000). At trial, Noble objected to the use of the phrases “or another” and “or another person,” claiming that the doctrine of transferred intent does not apply in the context of attempts.”

— Minn. Stat. § 609.2662(2) — 1 case

State v. Bauer, 471 N.W.2d 363 (Minn. Ct. App. 1991). “Minn. Stat. § 609.2662 (up to 40 years). In 1987, the presumptive sentence for this offense was 54 months, six months less than the sentence Bauer received.”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.