(UnitedVoice.com) – Alabama is at the center of a controversy right now over a state Supreme Court ruling that expanded the definition of a child to include frozen embryos. The ruling has upended in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments in the state. Now, an incident has taken place outside of the attorney general’s office.
On February 24, an explosive device was discovered outside of Republican Steve Marshall’s office. According to reports, the device was detonated near the intersection of South Bainbridge Street and Washington Avenue in Montgomery. AG Marshall issued a statement noting that “no staff or personnel were injured by the explosion.”
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) is leading the investigation into the explosion. Sgt. Jeremy Burkett said the State Bureau of Investigation learned of the detonation just after 8 a.m. on Monday, February 26. State troopers and agents with the ALEA Hazardous Device Unit responded to the area after the detonation and deemed it safe.
Authorities have not given a reason for the explosion, but it came after Marshall vowed he wouldn’t prosecute IVF providers. In a statement to the press, his chief counsel, Katherine Robertson, said the AG had “no intention of using the recent […] decision as a basis for prosecuting IVF families or providers.”
There’s no indication the two incidents are related, but the timing is notable. The University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital announced it was suspending all IVF treatments as a result of the ruling. The Center for Reproductive Medicine and Alabama Fertility Specialists also announced they were suspending treatments.
Dr. Mamie McLean, a specialist at Alabama Fertility Specialists, told ABC News the clinic was worried about the “far-reaching consequences” of the ruling on what “is safe to freeze and safe to discard.” The court ruling opened the door to the possibility that IVF doctors could be held civilly and possibly criminally liable for the destruction of embryos.
The ALEA is asking anyone with information about the detonation to contact them at 334-676-7890.
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