A legislative committee in Louisiana has blocked a bill that would have added exceptions for pregnancies conceived through rape or incest to the state's ban on abortions.
In Louisiana, abortions are prohibited. State law currently only permits exceptions if there is a substantial risk of death or impairment to the mother or if the pregnancy has been classified as “medically futile” because the fetus has a fatal abnormality. Doctors who are convicted of violating the law can face up to 15 years in prison and a fine of $200,000.
The House Criminal Justice Committee voted against House Bill 164 4-7. The vote was split along party lines with Republicans against and Democrats in favor of the policy.
Several Democratic lawmakers spoke in favor of the bill, citing the potential suffering of minors who may be sexually assaulted.
State Representative Delisha Boyd, who sponsored the bill, proposed adding an amendment to the bill limiting the exception to only minors ages 17 and under. Boyd originally brought the exception legislation before the chamber in 2023. The bill died in committee following a 10-5 vote against the measure.
“We have cases here in Louisiana with children being raped and then subjected to carrying a child to term,” said Boyd, per AP News. “I hope we take a look at the fact that this is to protect the most vulnerable, our children.”
But Republicans in the legislature were not convinced. Louisiana Representative Dobie Horton said that she believed in punishing anyone convicted of rape but could not condone destroying a fetus.
“I have daughters, I have granddaughters, I would like to implement the death penalty for the men, but can’t kill the innocent child,” she said, per Louisiana Radio Network.
“I think we should punish the perpetrator to the nth degree, I’d love to hang them from the high street if it was in my power to do so. But I cannot condone killing the innocent,” Horton said.
Last year, state lawmakers blocked a bill that would have asked state voters to decide if abortion access should be added as a right to the state’s constitution. The ballot referendum would have included access to contraceptives and infertility treatment under the umbrella term of reproductive rights.
The House committee’s vote frustrated some lawmakers, who felt the modifications were necessary.
“I wish we were at a place where we could have grown-folk discussions about this and make grown-folk decisions about how we treat our children in instances like this,” said Representative Vanessa LaFleur, a Democrat, per the Louisiana Illuminator.