Colorado proposal would set embryo rights

DENVER, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- Colorado legislators have agreed to put a measure on the 2008 ballot that would amend the state constitution to grant legal rights to fertilized human eggs.

The proposed amendment would ask voters whether "any human being from the moment of fertilization" can be awarded the rights to due process, equality and other inalienable rights, The New York Times reported Sunday.

Michael J. Norton, a lawyer representing the measure's proponents, said the proposal asks voters to decide a weighty ethical question.

"The whole issue centers on when does life begin," Norton said. The word "abortion" is not in the proposal, but Norton said its passage would classify abortion as "the destruction of a person" and consequently illegal.

Toni Panetta, the director of Naral Pro-Choice Colorado, said the proposal's passage would inundate the courts with cases to determine the legality of contraception

"All fertilized eggs could use the courts, and that lays the foundation for a potential onslaught," she said.

The proposal still faces logistic hurdles before being included on next year's ballot and could be a center point at the Democratic national convention held in Colorado in August.