By Dave Andrusko
South Dakota State Rep. Isaac Latterell
South Dakota is on the brink of becoming the thirteenth state to ban abortions of unborn babies capable of feeling pain.
On Monday the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection ACT, 59-7. The full House vote followed approval last Wednesday by House State Affairs Committee, 12-1.
The Senate approved a slightly different measure last week, 21-14. If the Senate approves the House bill, the legislation will go to pro-life Gov. Dennis Daugaard for approval. The bill allows an exception for medical emergencies.
State Rep. Isaac Latterell, the measure’s main House sponsor, said the bill recognizes “the humanity of unborn children” who can feel pain, adding, “These are people just like you and me.”
First enacted in 2010 by the state of Nebraska, the model Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, drafted by National Right to Life’s Department of State Legislation, is legislation which protects from abortion unborn children who are capable of feeling pain. Substantial medical evidence demonstrates that unborn children are capable of experiencing pain certainly by 20 weeks after fertilization.
The 12 states with Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Acts are Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin.