South Dakota Gov. Signs Bill Banning Abortions of Down Syndrome Babies
Abortions performed because of a prenatal Down syndrome diagnosis now carry felony charges in South Dakota after South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem signed the proposal into law.
According to The Christian Post, the bill was one of four pro-life bills Noem approved last week.
House Bill 1110 bans abortions where the pregnancy is terminated because of the likelihood the baby would be born with Down syndrome. There is an exemption to the law if the mother’s life is at risk.
“No person may perform or attempt to perform an abortion with knowledge that the pregnant woman is seeking the abortion because the unborn child either has been diagnosed with Down syndrome or has had a genetic screening indicating that the unborn child may have Down syndrome,” the bill reads.
“Any person who violates this section is guilty of a Class 6 felony. No penalty may be assessed against the woman upon whom the abortion is performed or attempted to be performed.”
Noem released a statement with her approval of the bill, saying that “God created each of us and endowed all of us with the right to life.”
“This is true for everyone, including those with an extra chromosome,” she wrote.
“I look forward to the day when the Supreme Court recognizes that all preborn children inherently possess this right to life, too,” she added. “Until that time comes, I am pleased to sign a ban on the abortion of a preborn child, just because that child is diagnosed with Down syndrome, as well as several other important pro-life bills.”
Noem also approved Senate Bill 183, which forbids contracts that force abortions, and House Bill 1114, which creates a definition of abortion that includes the language that a fetus is “an unborn human being.”
House Bill 1130, which requires clinics to provide information about abortion reversal procedures, was also approved.
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Tatiana Dyuvbanova
Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.
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