|
(Continued from page 24)
forcement to charge texting drivers a $25 fine if they've been pulled over for another violation.
• The bill also includes funding for a public information campaign.
• Supporters of the measure say the ban and education campaign will be enough to discourage many drivers from texting.
• Critics say local governments should retain the right to make their own driving ordinances. The bill would supplant other local policies on texting while driving.
• Even some supporters of the measure say they hope an amendment will be added to return some authority to local governments.
• The measure now goes on to the state's Senate for review.
•
SD panel passes abortion ban for gender selection
CHET BROKAW, Associated Press
• PIERRE, S.D. (AP) -- A South Dakota legislative panel on Wednesday approved a measure that would ban abortions sought because of the gender of a fetus after supporters said scientific advances are making it easier to determine the sex of a fetus earlier in a pregnancy.
• The measure's main sponsor, Rep. Jenna Haggar, R-Sioux Falls, said people in some Asian nations are aborting female fetuses because they want sons. The practice could spread to South Dakota because tests to identify the gender of a fetus are available in every drug store, she said.
• "We're faced with a moral urgency. Sex discrimination is wrong at any age. We must act now," Haggar said.
• Opponents said the measure is another attempt to hinder a woman's constitutional right to an abortion in South Dakota and would be difficult to enforce.
• Abbie Peterson, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice South Dakota, said the measure interferes with a woman's right to make a private medical decision. The bill is unrealistic because it would require a doctor to investigate whether a woman was seeking an abortion because of the fetus's gender, she said.
• "There's no way a doctor can know every thought in a woman's mind and every motive behind her decision-making," Peterson said.
• The House Judiciary Committee voted 9-3 to send the measure to the full House for further debate.
• The bill would make it a Class 6 felony, carrying a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a $4,000 fine, for a doctor to knowingly perform or attempt an abortion sought because of a fetus's gender.
(Continued on page 26)
|
|
