Ten reasons to oppose the criminalization of HIV exposure or transmission

Jürgens, Ralf; Cohen, Jonathan; Cameron, Edwin; Burris, Scott; Clayton, Michael; Elliott, Richard; Pearshouse, Richard; Gathumbi, Anne; Cupido, Delme

doi:10.1016/s0968-8080(09)34462-6

Cited by 36 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…The recent enactment of national laws that criminalize transmission of HIV in more than a dozen African countries has led to considerable controversy (36)(37)(38). Although the goal of the Action in West Africa (AWARE-HIV/AIDS) is to improve health and contribute to political stability and economic prosperity within the region (39), some argue that criminalization of HIV is likely to have a negative impact on public health and human rights.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Source identification in two criminal cases using phylogenetic analysis of HIV-1 DNA sequences

Scaduto

Brown

Haaland

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Phylogenetic analysis has been widely used to test the a priori hypothesis of epidemiological clustering in suspected transmission chains of HIV-1. Among studies showing strong support for relatedness between HIV samples obtained from infected individuals, evidence for the direction of transmission between epidemiologically related pairs has been lacking. During transmission of HIV, a genetic bottleneck occurs, resulting in the paraphyly of source viruses with respect to those of the recipient. This paraphyly establishes the direction of transmission, from which the source can then be inferred. Here, we present methods and results from two criminal cases, State of Washington v Anthony Eugene Whitfield , case number 04-1-0617-5 (Superior Court of the State of Washington, Thurston County, 2004) and State of Texas v Philippe Padieu , case numbers 219-82276-07, 219-82277-07, 219-82278-07, 219-82279-07, 219-82280-07, and 219-82705-07 (219th Judicial District Court, Collin County, TX, 2009), which provided evidence that direction can be established from blinded case samples. The observed paraphyly from each case study led to the identification of an inferred source (i.e., index case), whose identity was revealed at trial to be that of the defendant.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Source identification in two criminal cases using phylogenetic analysis of HIV-1 DNA sequences

Scaduto

Brown

Haaland

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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show abstract

“…HIV-positive women may then face the double threat of violence or abandonment from their partners and families, as well as fear of criminal prosecution. Because these concerns inhibit them from disclosing their status to their partners, such women are even more vulnerable to prosecution (Open Society Institute 2008, Csete et al 2009, Jü rgens et al 2009, Ahmed 2011. Furthermore, legislation could be used to prosecute mothers who transmit HIV to their children (Open Society Institute 2008, UNAIDS 2008, Csete et al 2009, Jü rgens et al 2009).…”

Section: Legal Marginalisation As a Barrier To Health Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Because these concerns inhibit them from disclosing their status to their partners, such women are even more vulnerable to prosecution (Open Society Institute 2008, Csete et al 2009, Jü rgens et al 2009, Ahmed 2011. Furthermore, legislation could be used to prosecute mothers who transmit HIV to their children (Open Society Institute 2008, UNAIDS 2008, Csete et al 2009, Jü rgens et al 2009). Criminal laws impede the creation of an environment where women feel safe seeking testing or treatment for their HIV status.…”

Section: Legal Marginalisation As a Barrier To Health Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Criminalising consensual sexual behaviour in the context of HIV: Consequences, evidence, and leadership

Ahmed

Kaplan

Symington

et al. 2011

Global Public Health

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This paper provides an overview of the use of the criminal law to regulate sexual behaviour in three areas of critical importance: (1) HIV exposure in otherwise consensual sex, (2) sex work and (3) sexual activity largely affecting sexual minorities. It analyses criminal law pertaining to these three distinct areas together, allowing for a more comprehensive and cohesive understanding of criminalisation and its effects. The paper highlights current evidence of how criminalisation undermines HIV prevention and treatment. It focuses on three specific negative effects of criminalisation: (1) enhancing stigma and discrimination, (2) undermining public health intervention through legal marginalisation and (3) placing people in state custody. The paper also highlights gaps in evidence and the need for strong institutional leadership from UN agencies in ending the criminalisation of consensual sexual activity. This paper serves two goals: (1) highlighting the current state of research and emphasising where key institutions have or have not provided appropriate leadership on these issues and (2) establishing a forward-looking agenda that includes a concerted response to the inappropriate use of the criminal law with respect to sexuality as part of the global response to HIV.

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“…Qualitative research conducted by Adam et al, with 122 individuals with HIV in Canada indicated having a heightened sense of vulnerability and fear, which negatively affected their social relationships such as initiating an intimate relationship [63]. Other authors argued against the necessity of the HIV-specific laws since existing laws were found to be adequate to prosecute those with the intent to harm others through sexual transmission, therefore concluded that the existence of these laws were promoting an increased HIV stigmatization and fear towards this group of vulnerable population [64,65]. Moreover, these studies indicated that some individual's might not be aware of their diagnosis and unwittingly prosecuted due to their non-disclosure, which enforced the perception of punishing the behaviour despite having insufficient evidence to prove intent.…”

Section: Impact Of Criminalizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ten reasons to oppose the criminalization of HIV exposure or transmission

Cited by 36 publications

References 5 publications

Source identification in two criminal cases using phylogenetic analysis of HIV-1 DNA sequences

Source identification in two criminal cases using phylogenetic analysis of HIV-1 DNA sequences

Criminalising consensual sexual behaviour in the context of HIV: Consequences, evidence, and leadership

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