because prosecutors, courts, and legislators continue to view and characterize the blood, semen, and saliva of people living with HIV as a deadly weapon . (9) Multiple peer-reviewed studies demonstrate that HIV-specific laws do not reduce risk-taking behavior or increase disclosure by people living with or at risk of HIV, and there is increasing evidence that these laws reduce the willingness to get tested. Furthermore, placing legal responsibility for preventing the transmission of HIV and other pathogens that can be sexually transmitted exclusively on people diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection undermines the public health message that all people are responsible for practicing behaviors that protect themselves from HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. Unfortunately, some State laws create an expectation of disclosure work against public health communication and discourage risk-reduction measures that could prevent transmission as a result of those who are acutely infected and unaware of their status. (10) The identity of an individual subject to an HIV-based prosecution is broadcast through media reports, potentially destroying employment opportunities and relationships and violating the person’s right to privacy. (11) Individuals who are convicted after an HIV-based prosecution often must register as sex offenders even in cases involving consensual sexual activity. Their employability is destroyed, and their family relationships are fractured. (12) The United Nations, including the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), urges governments to limit criminalization to cases of intentional transmission. This requirement would limit prosecutions to situations where a person knows his or her HIV-positive status, acts with the intention to transmit HIV, and does in fact transmit it . UNAIDS also recommends that criminal law should not be applied to cases where there is no significant risk of transmission. (13) In 2010, the Federal Government released the first ever National