COLUMBUS, Ohio (BP) — The Ohio state Senate last week came one vote short of overriding a veto by Ohio Gov. John Kasich on a bill that would have protected babies from abortion after a detectable heartbeat. Kasich, a Republican, said he vetoed the bill for the second time in two years because it would saddle the state with a costly court battle and would ultimately be declared unconstitutional.
On the same day Kasich vetoed the heartbeat bill he signed a measure making “dismemberment abortion” a fourth-degree felony for abortionists.
During the dismemberment procedure, most commonly used during the second trimester, abortionists kill and extract an unborn child by removing it piecemeal from the mother’s womb. The new law, which goes into effect in March, bans the practice unless the unborn child is already dead, with exceptions for rape and danger to the mother’s life.
Mike Gonidakis, president of Ohio Right to Life, said in a statement that his group is “immensely grateful” to Kasich and the legislature for the success of the bill: “Ohioans can sleep easier tonight knowing that the horrendous practice of dismemberment abortions is behind us.”
Ohio becomes the 10th state to pass legislation to block the practice, but only two other states — Mississippi and West Virginia — have been able to retain their laws after pro-abortion groups filed suit. Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas have all faced legal challenges to their dismemberment bans, with some legal battles ongoing.
Earlier this month, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review its case defending its dismemberment abortion protections.
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Source: Baptist Press
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