NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee’s governor has approved legislation aimed at preventing adults from helping minors get an abortion or receive gender-affirming care without parental consent, proposals that will likely face immediate legal challenges when they take effect later this year.
Republican Gov. Bill Lee quietly signed the bills into law Tuesday without comment. However, the governor’s actions were not unexpected. During his tenure, Lee enacted sweeping restrictions on gender-affirming care for young people and advocated for a near-total ban on abortion in Tennessee, while also emphasizing his opposition to the procedure.
Both laws come into force on July 1st.
Lee’s actions mean that Tennessee will soon become just the second state in the country to enact legislation that supporters say will prevent any adult who “knowingly recruits, harbors or transports” a pregnant minor within the state from getting an abortion. without the consent of the minor’s parents. or guardians. Ambulance drivers, emergency medical services personnel, and other common transportation services are exempt by law.
Those convicted of breaking the law would be charged with a class A misdemeanor, which carries a prison sentence of nearly a year.
“Fathers have the right to be involved in the well-being of their daughters. The abortion industry has no right to keep parents in the dark at a time when their daughters are so vulnerable and could be in danger,” said Stacy Dunn, Tennessee Right to Life President, in a statement.
Meanwhile, Tennessee is so far the first state to penalize adults who help minors receive gender-affirming care without parental consent. The bill reflects much of the same language as a proposed anti-abortion anti-trafficking call, where violations could range from talking to a teenager on a website about where to find care to helping that young person travel to another state with looser gender restrictions. . stating care services.
Last year, Idaho became the first state to enact a so-called “abortion trafficking” law, but a federal judge temporarily blocked the law after reproductive rights groups sued to challenge it.
The American Civil Liberties Union sent a letter to Governor Lee earlier this month warning that “there is nothing” in the statute that “suggests that a court will view more favorably your criminalization of speech and expression based on content,” as the bill. as “unconstitutionally vague”.
At the same time, Planned Parenthood CEO Ashley Coffield told reporters that her organization was “consulting with our attorneys about how to comply with the law if we need to comply with it or if we can challenge the law.”
The Tennessee version contains no exemptions for minors who may have been raped by their parents or guardians. Instead, the new statute says that the biological father of a pregnant minor cannot bring civil action if the pregnancy was caused by rape.
Like Idaho, Tennessee prohibits abortion at all stages of pregnancy, but there are exemptions in cases of molar pregnancies, ectopic pregnancies and to eliminate a miscarriage or to save the mother’s life. Notably, doctors must use their “reasonable medical” judgment – a term that some say is too vague and which may be challenged by fellow doctors – to decide whether performing the procedure could save the pregnant patient’s life or prevent serious injury.
A group of women is currently suing to clarify the state’s abortion ban. A court ruling is expected soon on whether the lawsuit can continue or whether the law can be suspended while the legal battle continues.
This story originally appeared on ABCNews.go.com read the full story
