An unborn child is now recognized as a human being under island’s Penal Code

Gov. Jenniffer González Colón

By THE STAR STAFF

Gov. Jenniffer González Colón signed Senate Bill 923 on Thursday, amending Article 92 of the Penal Code to establish that, for the purposes of subsections (g) and (h) of Article 93, the term “human being” will include the unborn child at any stage of gestation within the mother’s womb.

The legislation, filed as Administration Bill A-098 on Jan. 12, became Law 18-2026 after receiving the governor’s signature.

According to the official statement, the amendment complements Law 166-2025, known as the Keyshla Madlane Law, which classifies as first-degree murder the intentional and knowing killing of a pregnant woman when this also results in the death of the unborn child.

The statute aims to harmonize existing criminal provisions by expressly including the unborn child within the definition applicable in those articles of the Penal Code.