North Dakota passes near-total abortion ban
State house attempts to adjust laws so that it passes state legal oversight
The North Dakota State House passed a near-total ban on abortion past six weeks on Monday. It makes abortion a class-c felony that can land a person in jail for five years with a fine of up to $10,000.
The law, known as SB2150, passed with a vote of 76-14, according to ABC News. The state already had a trigger ban in place that would have banned abortion following the removal of federal protections. That state supreme court is currently reviewing that law to determine whether it will be permitted to go into effect. Destini Spaeth, president of the North Dakota Women in Need Fund, said this new law feels redundant.
“It may be a point for them to flush their feathers, show their reach, do a power grab and try to enact some of the most extreme abortion restrictions in the country,” Spaeth said. “But with that ruling from the North Dakota Supreme Court, it's hard to see how they would have any standing go going forward.”
While the debate seemingly pits the judiciary and legislature at odds, Spaeth said that it’s unlikely that pro-abortion forces would be able to get judges that are sympathetic in a state that is as conservative as North Dakota. Spaeth said she hopes it will take a more non-partisan and scientific-based approach in reviewing these laws.
“It's not something that I would choose to hang my hat on,” Spaeth said.
The state’s only abortion clinic, the Red River Women’s Clinic, had been located in Fargo. But now it’s 10 miles east in Moorhead, Minnesota. The ND WIN Fund is currently funding abortions for women in North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota.
“As of right now, all North Dakotans are leaving the state,” Spaeth said. “And it's very likely that they're traveling to Minnesota for that. There are also, I believe, two clinics in Montana that patients are also able to get to. It's just a lot of times it comes down to numbers and who can get them in the fastest.”
Spaeth said North Dakotans had voted down a fetal personhood amendment in 2014. She feels that’s evidence that the state’s residents don’t support these efforts to curtail and restrict abortion access.
“Now, are they going to have a Planned Parenthood placard in their yard?” Spaeth said. “Probably not. But when it comes to healthcare decisions and abortion, I do believe that anti-abortion zealots are the minority.”