South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden, a Republican, signed a wave of new pro-life legislation March 20 to clarify the state’s existing abortion law, classify providing abortion tools to pregnant women as a felony, and require schools to show students a video depicting fetal growth and development.
While he signed the bills at a pregnancy resource center in Sioux Falls, Rhoden said that the legislation would help “strengthen South Dakota’s pro-life laws,” according to South Dakota Searchlight. The state already has near-total pro-life laws under a trigger law that took effect after the U.S Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. The only exception in which abortion is permissible are situations where the mother’s life is endangered.
Providing or procuring an abortion is already a felony in South Dakota. However, one of the new laws adds to the current regulations by making it a felony to provide or procure an abortion for a “pregnant person” — updating the law’s original language, which had said “pregnant female.”
The same law also makes it a felony to provide, distribute, or advertise any tool or implement intended to cause an abortion, including abortion pills. Those who violate the law are liable for up to $10,000 per violation and may face further legal action from the attorney general.
A second law further clarifies existing abortion regulations by explaining what does not constitute an abortion procedure. According to South Dakota Searchlight, the law includes in that category treatment for miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, the removal of a “deceased unborn child,” medical procedures that unintentionally result in the loss of the baby, or procedures intended to save the pregnancy or the “health of the unborn child.”
The final law Rhoden signed requires South Dakota schools to show students a high-definition ultrasound video depicting the “presence of the brain, heart, and other major organs as they appear at various stages of prenatal development.”
The law also requires schools to show another video that demonstrates “the progress of prenatal human development from fertilization through birth.” As Zeale News previously reported, several other states have similar laws that refer to Live Action’s “Meet Baby Olivia” video, which follows the growth and development of an unborn child from conception through all nine months of pregnancy.
In a press release, Rhoden said that South Dakota is “the most pro-life state in America.”
He added, “Our laws reflect the fact that an unborn child is a person — and that child is worthy of our protection and respect.”
According to South Dakota Searchlight, the American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota challenged the bills during this year’s legislative session, arguing that they are too political, threaten women’s healthcare, and “diminish young South Dakotans’ access to scientifically accurate sex education.” The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists also argued against the bills, saying they are not specific enough and could result in complicated situations later where it is not clear if an abortion is being performed.