STATE v. ALLEN, 487 P.3d 837

This is State of Oklahoma v. Kelvin Wayne Allen & Tami Leann Ware, opinion authorized for publication May 20, 2021 (2021 OK CR 13, 487 P.3d 837).
At trial, the court granted the parents’ motions to quash on October 30, 2019, dismissing neglect charges related to an unborn child.
On appeal the Court of Criminal Appeals concluded the parents neglected their unborn child by exposing the fetus to dangerous drugs.
The Court noted this result was controlled by Green v. State, decided Sept. 10, 2020, which held exposing an unborn child to dangerous drugs can constitute child neglect.
Judge Lewis dissented from publication, arguing publication was unnecessary, that Green was dispositive, and that publishing so soon after Green dilutes precedent and invites attempts to distinguish it.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether exposing an unborn child to dangerous drugs can constitute child neglect	State: Yes; such exposure neglects the unborn child and supports prosecution	Allen/Ware: At time of the trial court ruling there was no clear controlling authority; motions to quash were properly granted	Court: Follows Green — exposing an unborn child to dangerous drugs can constitute neglect; parents’ actions fit that standard
Whether this opinion should be published	State: Publication appropriate to affirm and clarify law	Defendants / Dissent: Publication unnecessary; case could have been summarily reversed by citation to Green; publication dilutes Green	Court: Authorized the opinion for publication over the dissent

State v. Green, 474 P.3d 886 (Okla. Crim. App. 2020) (held that exposing an unborn child to dangerous drugs can constitute child neglect)
State v. Allen, 487 P.3d 837 (Okla. Crim. App. 2021) (opinion authorized for publication holding parents neglected their unborn child by drug exposure; dissent argued publication was unnecessary)