Born alive abortion measure criticized by medical community, passes South Dakota House
A measure to require physicians to save the life of an infant born following a botched abortion sailed to victory in the South Dakota State House of Representatives on Thursday, Jan. 28, in Pierre. The vote was along party lines. Written By: Christopher Vondracek | ×
South Dakota legislator Rep. Fred Deutsch, a Republican from rural Codington County, stands up on the House floor to speak in favor of his bill that would penalize doctors in the state $100,000 for failing to save the life of an infant born after a failed abortion. Medical experts say his bill was vaguely written and criminalizes an act that is virtually unheard of South Dakota, as state law bans abortions after 12 weeks. (Christopher Vondracek / Forum News Service)
More than a third of the members of the South Dakota Statehouse stood up on Tuesday, Jan. 26, initiating a "smoke out" and reviving a bill defeated earlier in the day that, if enacted, would prohibit transgender persons from updating birth certificates to reflect their sex designation. The measure has been decried by LGBTQ advocates.