Pennsylvania has renewed a law that allows pregnant women to press charges against strangers for excessively harassing them to touch their belly.(RNN) – If you're pregnant and want your belly left alone – move to Pennsylvania. The state is starting to enforce a law where it's illegal to touch a pregnant woman's belly without asking her.
A recent harassment incident has brought this law back to light, but the law itself has been in the books for awhile.
A woman filed a harassment charge against a Cumberland County, PA, man who rubbed her belly without asking her brought the statute back into the spotlight.
Authorities say they're issuing a renewed warning.
"Essentially, someone had touched a pregnant woman's belly. That's very common that pregnant women have to go through that. The only problem is when you harass, annoy, alarm in the act of touching, then it's a violation, a harassment charge," local attorney Phil DiLucente told WPXI.
According to WPXI, DiLucente said pressing charges is something done if the touching gets out of hand.
So in case you wish to touch the unborn baby, in hopes a genie pops out or something, seek permission before you do so.
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