The Alabama State senate voted Tuesday evening to pass a bill that criminalizes doctors who perform abortions at any pregnancy stage, unless the mother’s life is in danger. Under the bill, which passed the Alabama house last month, doctors who perform abortions would face up to 99 years in prison. Four states this year have enacted so-called heartbeat bills, which effectively ban abortions after six weeks. Those laws are not in effect, owing to legal challenges. We’ll discuss the Alabama bill and its legal and practical implications.
Alabama Passes Law Banning Nearly All Abortions
23:43
Pro-choice activists hold signs alongside anti-abortion activists participating in the "March for Life," an annual event to mark the anniversary of the 1973 Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in the US, outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, January 18, 2019. (Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)
Guests:
Mary Ziegler, professor, Florida State University College of Law; author, "Beyond Abortion: Roe v. Wade and the Battle for Privacy" and "After Roe: The Lost History of The Abortion Debate"
Kim Chandler, Alabama-based reporter, Associated Press
Sponsored