South Dakota Bill Outlawing Abortion Advances to State Senate
The Associated Press
PIERRE, S.D. -- The South Dakota House overwhelmingly passed a bill Thursday that would ban nearly all abortions in the state, sending the issue to the Senate.
Supporters are pushing the measure as a means of drawing the attention of the U.S. Supreme Court, hoping to set up a legal challenge that ultimately will result in reversal of the high court's 1973 decision legalizing abortion.
The bill banning abortion, HB1215, was passed 47-22 in the House after more than an hour of debate.
Rep. Roger Hunt, R-Brandon, said the recent appointment of two new members on the Supreme Court and the prospect of one or two more replacements within a few years as older members retire makes it a good time to mount a challenge to the earlier Roe v. Wade decision.
"It is important, I believe, at this time in our history to protect the life of the unborn," he said.
Hunt is the prime sponsor of the legislation.
Although saying they personally abhor abortion, opponents made several unsuccessful attempts to make exceptions in cases of rape and incest, and to protect pregnant women whose health may be endangered.
The measure provides a loophole to save the lives of women who may otherwise die if they cannot get abortions: Doctors who do lifesaving abortions cannot be prosecuted.
The penalty for doing illegal abortions would be a maximum of five years in prison.
Among those to vote against the bill was Rep. Joni Cutler, R-Sioux Falls.
"The vote for this bill is an experiment in the courts, is done at the expense and suffering of those rape and incest victims who'd be forced by the government into pregnancy," she said. "The disregard for their pain and suffering ... was apparent to me. This certainly challenges my notion of the land of the free and the brave."
Other opponents argued that the state should not be thrust into an expensive lawsuit to assuage the personal, moral and religious convictions of the legislative majority. The South Dakota Legislature has been steadfastly against abortion, passing several laws in the last decade or so to place various restrictions on the procedure.
Answering complaints about the cost of defending a lawsuit, Hunt said a private benefactor has promised to donate $1 million to help finance the lawsuit. He added that the issue goes far beyond money.
"You cannot put a value on life," he said. "None of us would sell any of our children for a million dollars."
Hunt said the bill is based on the findings of a legislatively created task force that studied abortion last year. The task force concluded that life begins at conception and each human being is totally unique immediately at the time of fertilization, he said.
Hunt said HB1215 also recognizes that abortion should be prohibited to protect women and unborn children and to protect a woman's right to a relationship with her unborn child. The state has an interest in protecting that relationship, he said.
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Posted by Editor at February 10, 2006 05:29 PM
