Infanticide: forms, causes and jurisprudential solutions

Faced with the crime of infanticide, all nations seek justice for both mothers and their infants. The psychopathology of childbirth and infanticide are among the most complex in human experience. This review takes the example of English law, and traces its evolution during four epochs, as knowledge increased and public attitudes changed. The combination of the 1922 Infanticide Act, recognizing the special circumstances of parturition, and the 1957 Homicide Act, with its concept of diminished responsibility, offer a solution worthy of consideration by other nations.