The statute does not have a gestational period requirement for purposes of its definitional section. Any “child” is a beneficiary under the wrongful death statute. This would include a child adopted during the life, as well as anyone who is genetically determined to be a child, which, under the paternity statutes could be done at any time by DNA testing.
If the DNA of the deceased person is preserved from which a chain of custody can be legally established to match the child, irregardless of when the child was born, and there is a legitimate match, then the child would be determined to be a beneficiary under the wrongful death statute.
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