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South Dakota anti-abortion law
(originally bill, HB1215)

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Abortion in South Dakota:

About 825 abortions are performed yearly in South Dakota.

Bill HB 1215 was introduced into the legislature with the intent of triggering the Supreme Court overturn of Roe v. Wade. It was signed into law by Governor Mike Rounds (R) 2006-MAR-06  

It criminalizes almost all abortions in the state. Only abortions necessary to save the life of the woman would be allowed. It contains no exceptions to permit abortions in the case of rape or incest. It does not allow an exception to prevent serious and/or permanent disability to the woman.

The law prohibits termination of human life at any time after conception. That is, once conception has occurred, the woman is forced to give birth, unless a miscarriage happens.  The wording of the law appears to be ambiguous on the topic of emergency contraception (EC). Arguments can be made that the law either criminalizes or allows EC. The section of the law that appears at first glance to permit EC may in fact prohibit it.

Normally, the law would have taken effect in 2006-JUL. However, pro-choice forces raised sufficient signatures to delay implementing the law until the public was able to vote on the issue during the mid-term elections on 2006-NOV-07. The law was defeated by a clear majority and is now dead in the water.

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