BOISE, Idaho — Idaho Senator, Dan Foreman (R), introduced a proposed Idaho law Wednesday, Jan. 16, which aims to remove rape and incest as exemptions in the state's abortion laws. Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates communication manager Mack Smith told KTVB Idaho lawmakers are attempting to strip people of basic reproductive rights.
"We’ve already seen the impacts the current abortion ban has had on the state, and instead of working to make it better, those in power are trying to see how far they can take us backward. It's time to stop wasting time on deeply unpopular legislation with no path forward and start working together to find solutions to our current healthcare crisis," Smith said.
Proposed Senate Bill 1229, it aims to change two sections in Idaho law. Those being the "Defense of Life Act" and "Abortion Following Detection of a Fetal Heartbeat Prohibited."
Sen. Melissa Wintrow (D), said the "rape exception" in Idaho code is not worth the paper it's printed on because most victims don't report to police, police reports are protected from release by lay, doctors don't want to expose themselves to litigation, most women don't know they are pregnant in the first trimester and it's difficult to get emergency contraception in the state.
"If we really want to be compassionate to victims of sexual and domestic violence, the government wouldn't make it harder to get an abortion after one of the most intimately violent experiences anyone could endure. The trauma and shock that victims experience is already hard to navigate and then adding this grocery list of procedures you have to figure out doesn't help. The traumas that victims experience are not neatly sorted into boxes and to navigate a complex and hostile web of laws to find support is not easy. We need to trust women and trust their judgements instead of treating them like second class citizens that can't manage their own lives without stringent and cruel laws," Wintrow said.
Within both sections of the proposal, the legislation would remove the language which allows abortion in the case of a woman or child who has reported to law enforcement that she is a victim of rape or incest and presents the formal document to a physician.
If passed, medical professionals performing an abortion in rape or incest would face up to two to five years in prison. The bill also has an emergency clause, which means if the bill was signed into law by the governor, it would immediately take effect.
ACLU of Idaho's communication director Rebecca De León told KTVB the ACLU unequivocally opposes the bill.
“Senate Bill 1229 is a personal bill brought by Senator Foreman that attempts to eliminate the already narrow exemptions in Idaho statute to accessing abortion, potentially taking away reproductive health care from victims and survivors of rape who have cooperated and complied with the law in reporting. This is another instance of a lawmaker misinterpreting the First Amendment’s freedom of religion protections to justify taking away someone else’s right to self determination. Anyone who is pregnant in Idaho as a result of rape should be able to access resources and health care in their pursuit of healing and justice – they should not be treated as a criminal," De León said.
On Thursday, Jan. 17, the bill was printed and referred to the State Affairs Committee, which decides if it moves to the Senate floor.
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