Louisiana keeps abortion ban intact without exceptions for rape, incest
Louisiana will keep its strict abortion ban in place with no exceptions for rape or incest after lawmakers rejected a bill that would have added the exceptions during a hearing filled with emotional, tearful testimony on both sides.
Members of the Louisiana House Criminal Justice Committee voted 10-5 to kill House Bill 346 by Democratic New Orleans Rep. Delisha Boyd.
The committee also rejected House Bill 522 by Democratic New Orleans Rep. Aimee Freeman to remove jail time for doctors who perform abortion and require one instead of two doctors to diagnose a futile pregnancy that would allow an abortion, signaling all efforts to soften ban are likely dead for this year.
Boyd told her own story of being the product of rape. Boyd's mother, who was 15 when she was raped, died when she was 28.
"My mother never recovered," Boyd said. "No one looked after my mother. No one looked out for me."
Louisiana passed its near-total abortion ban, one of the strictest in the nation, in 2022 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the historic Roe v. Wade decision.
One rape victim, weeping, said she would have committed suicide if had she been forced to carry her rapist's child to term.
Another rape victim said she still suffered from PTSD.
"At least I knew if I had become pregnant I would not have had to carry the child," said Katie Hunter Lowrey of Louisiana Survivors for Reform. "There's a lot of talk about supporting victims in this committee. If you're making victims carry forced pregnancies you're not supporting victims."
Dr. Camille Harris Williams, a pediatrician, said she has treated hundreds of raped children in her 25-year practice.
"To take away their right to make a decision continues to perpetuate the violence," Williams said.
But other rape victims testified against adding rape and incest exceptions, saying abortion punishes the innocent rather than the guilty rapists.
Debbie Melvin, an activist who opposes abortion rights, said, "Abortion can be like a second rape. Abortion is an inherently destructive act."
And Dr. Damon Cudihy, an obstetrician, disputed other doctors' claims that "there are any health benefits to abortion."
"There's ample research women are far more likely to commit suicide if they had an abortion," Cudihy said.
More: Is the abortion pill legal in Louisiana after Supreme Court ruling?
Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Louisiana keeps strict abortion ban with no exceptions for rape, incest
