Louisiana lawmakers reject adding exceptions of rape and incest to abortion ban

BATON ROUGE, La. -- Despite pleas from Democrats and gut-wrenching grounds from doctors and rape survivors, a GOP-controlled legislative committee rejected a measure Tuesday that would person added cases of rape and incest arsenic exceptions to Louisiana’s termination ban.

In the reliably reddish state, which is firmly ensconced successful the Bible Belt and wherever adjacent immoderate Democrats reason abortions, adding exceptions to Louisiana's strict instrumentality has been an ongoing conflict for advocates — with a akin measurement failing past year. Currently, of the 14 states with termination bans astatine each stages of pregnancy, six person exceptions successful cases of rape and 5 person exceptions for incest.

"I volition beg (committee) members to travel to communal sense," Democratic authorities Rep. Alonzo Knox said to chap lawmakers up of the vote, urging them to springiness support to the exceptions. “I'm begging now.”

Lawmakers voted against the measure on enactment lines, with the measurement failing 4-7.

A astir identical measure met the aforesaid destiny past year, efficaciously dying successful the aforesaid committee. In the hopes of advancing the authorities retired of committee and to the House level for afloat debate, measure sponsor Democratic authorities Rep. Delisha Boyd added an amendment to the measurement truthful that the exceptions would lone use to those who are younger than 17. However, the alteration was inactive not capable to sway opponents.

“We person cases present successful Louisiana with children being raped and past subjected to carrying a kid to term,” Boyd, a Democrat who has told her ain mother’s communicative successful an effort to combat for transition of the bil l. “I anticipation we instrumentality a look astatine the information that this is to support the astir vulnerable, our children.”

Boyd said she volition proceed to effort to get the measure onto the floor, perchance asking the House enclosure to ballot to bypass the committee. However, the method is seldom palmy for Democrats successful the Legislature wherever Republicans clasp a supermajority.

While astir of those who voted against the measure did not springiness a crushed for their vote, GOP authorities Rep. Dodie Horton offered her thoughts, saying that portion she believes convicted rapists should person the maximum punishment possible, she can't successful bully conscience let for abortions. She described the fetuses arsenic “innocent children.”

“I deliberation we should punish the perpetrator to the nth degree, I’d emotion to bent them from the precocious thoroughfare if it was successful my powerfulness to bash so. But I cannot condone sidesplitting the innocent,” Horton said.

As successful aggregate different Republican states, Louisiana’s termination instrumentality went into effect successful 2022 pursuing the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, ending a half-century of the nationwide close to abortion. The lone exceptions to the prohibition are if determination is important hazard of decease oregon impairment to the parent if she continues the gestation oregon successful the lawsuit of “medically futile” pregnancies — erstwhile the fetus has a fatal abnormality.

Democrats person repeatedly fought — and failed — to loosen the instrumentality by clarifying vague language, abolishing jailhouse clip for doctors who execute amerciable abortions and adding exceptions.

“It's disgusting to maine that we person a nine wherever we can't marque exceptions successful a concern wherever a young girl's innocence has been taken distant successful the astir vile way... and present she's impregnated and somebody, somewhere, wants to unit a nine, 10, 11, 12, 13-year-old kid to person a babe for the monster that took distant her innocence?” Knox said.

The measure attracted dozens of radical to testify, including rape survivors who shared their ain stories and doctors who argued that their hands are tied by the existent law.

OB-GYN Dr. Neelima Sukhavasi told lawmakers that since the termination prohibition has gone into effect, she and different colleagues person delivered babies who are birthed by teenagers who person been raped.

“One of these teenagers delivered a babe portion clutching a Teddy Bear — and that's an representation that erstwhile you spot that, you can't unsee it,” Sukhavasi said.

In 2021, determination were 7,444 reported abortions successful Louisiana, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Of those, 27 were obtained by radical younger than 15. Nationwide, 1,338 large patients nether 15 received abortions, according to the CDC.

A survey released by the Journal of the American Medical Association recovered that betwixt July 2022 and January 2024, determination were much than 64,000 pregnancies resulting from rape successful states wherever termination has been banned successful each oregon astir cases.