Research by University of Illinois Springfield Professor of Legal Studies Deborah Anthony was cited by the California Supreme Court in a 2025 decision that reversed a woman’s murder conviction and cautioned courts against relying on gender-based assumptions when determining a parent’s criminal liability for failing to protect a child.

In People v. Collins, 561 P.3d 801 (Cal. 2025), the court overturned a second-degree murder conviction based on a failure-to-protect theory, concluding that the evidence did not establish the required mental state for implied malice murder. The court held that a parent may not be convicted of murder for failing to act unless prosecutors show the parent knew to a substantial degree of certainty that a life-endangering act was occurring or about to occur and consciously disregarded that risk.

In its opinion, the court emphasized that it is improper to infer a parent’s knowledge or intent based on gendered expectations of parenthood. In discussing this concern, the court cited Anthony’s 2022 law review article, “The Law of Motherhood in the Gender-Dependent Application of Criminal Responsibility for Failing to Protect Children,” published in The Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law. The court referenced the article in explaining that mothers are often held to higher and different standards than fathers based on stereotypes rather than evidence.

Anthony’s scholarship examines how failure-to-protect theories are disproportionately applied to mothers, often holding them to a higher standard of foresight and responsibility than fathers when another caregiver harms a child. Her research documents how gender stereotypes can shape investigations, charging decisions and prosecutions, even when the law itself is gender neutral.

“The prosecution and conviction of mothers almost exclusively for failure to protect their children from harm by another caregiver is the most extreme example of gender disparity I am aware of in our legal system,” Anthony said. “Because these cases happen at the local level, are not tracked and involve different legal actors, the issue and its shocking scope nationwide often go unnoticed. Examining these cases makes clear that stereotypes about motherhood are central to this phenomenon and that real harm results. I am pleased this issue is receiving more attention and that it is leading to concrete results in people’s lives.”

Anthony joined UIS in 2006 and serves as the chair of the Legal Studies Department and director of the UIS Pre-Law Center. She holds a law degree from Georgetown University, along with degrees from the University of Utah and the University of Texas at Austin, and previously practiced law, serving indigent individuals in family law, domestic violence, civil rights and housing law.

Her teaching and research focus on constitutional law, gender and family law and employment discrimination. Her scholarship has been published in leading law journals and addresses criminal responsibility, parental liability and constitutional protections.