Judge Blocks Indiana Law Banning Abortions on Babies With Down Syndrome

State   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Jun 30, 2016   |   2:41PM   |   Indianapolis, IN

An Indiana judge has sided with Planned Parenthood in the abortion company’s request to block a new Indiana law that made it the second state int he nation to ban abortions on babies with Down syndrome. Gov. Mike Pence signed the bill earlier this year to protect unborn babies from being aborted simply because of a disability, race or sex.

Pence signed House Bill 1337, which would ban abortion doctors from knowingly aborting an unborn baby solely because of a genetic disability such as Down syndrome, the unborn baby’s race or sex. The bill also has several other abortion-related measures, including a requirement that aborted or miscarried babies’ bodies be cremated or buried and another requirement that abortionists who have hospital admitting privileges renew them annually. The burial/cremation requirement backs up a law passed in 2015 by Gov. Pence requiring that aborted babies’ bodies be disposed of in a humane way.

But, today, Judge Tanya Walton Pratt of the U.S. Court for the Southern District of Indiana granted Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky’s request for an injunction against the measure, known as the Dignity for the Unborn Law, before it could take effect tomorrow.

Indiana Right to Life predicted Pratt, who was appointed by President Obama, would block the Dignity for the Unborn law from taking effect. Pratt has a history of siding with the abortion lobby; Pratt blocked provisions of a 2011 Indiana law that denied taxpayer funds to abortion businesses and required that pregnant women be told about an unborn child’s ability to feel pain.

“Today a federal judge denied the civil rights of unborn children, then proceeded to equate aborted children to common medical waste by blocking dignified disposal,” said Mike Fichter, President and CEO of Indiana Right to Life. “This ruling is an appalling human rights injustice and we urge the state to appeal.

“Abortion businesses like Planned Parenthood turn to activist judges anytime they believe their lucrative businesses are threatened. It is no surprise that a judge appointed by Obama with a history of ruling against pro-life measures would block the Dignity for the Unborn law. Today’s decision is one small step in the legal process to uphold the Dignity for the Unborn law as the state protects the civil rights of unborn children.”

The Dignity for the Unborn law deals with various measures related to abortion, including putting into law Hoosiers’ longstanding values that babies shouldn’t be aborted because of disability, gender or race. In addition, it provides perinatal hospice information to parents who receive a negative prenatal diagnosis, Fichter explained.

He added that tt imposes respectful disposal methods of aborted fetal remains so that baby body parts aren’t comingled with gall bladders and treated as medical waste. It prohibits the transportation of an aborted baby into or out of Indiana except for the purpose of final disposition. It also increases informed consent for women by prohibiting group counseling before an abortion so that the woman has an opportunity to discuss the upcoming abortion procedure in private.

Pence delivered eloquent remarks when he signed the legislation.

“Throughout my public career, I have stood for the sanctity of life. HEA 1337 is a comprehensive pro-life measure that affirms the value of all human life, which is why I signed it into law today,” Governor Pence said in a statement.

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Pence continued: “I believe that a society can be judged by how it deals with its most vulnerable—the aged, the infirm, the disabled and the unborn. HEA 1337 will ensure the dignified final treatment of the unborn and prohibits abortions that are based only on the unborn child’s sex, race, color, national origin, ancestry, or disability, including Down syndrome.”

“Some of my most precious moments as Governor have been with families of children with disabilities, especially those raising children with Down syndrome. These Hoosiers never fail to inspire me with their compassion and these special children never fail to move me with their love and joy,” he continued. “By enacting this legislation, we take an important step in protecting the unborn, while still providing an exception for the life of the mother. I sign this legislation with a prayer that God would continue to bless these precious children, mothers and families.”

State Sen. Travis Holdman previously said the measure would basically make it “a criminal act” for an abortion doctor to knowingly end an unborn child’s life because of discrimination against sex, race or disability.

Indiana state Sen. Liz Brown, who worked with Holdman on the measure, said previously that many families face pressure to abort from doctors or other health care professionals when their babies are diagnosed with an illness or disability in the womb. LifeNews has documented numerous cases of families saying the same thing.

“What we hear from doctors is — it would really be better off if you were not born,” Brown said. “If you are born, we will love you, and we think you have equal rights and should be a member of society. In fact, we have the Americans with Disabilities Act and have to make accommodations. But we don’t want to make the accommodation before you’re born, and in fact, it would really be easier if you were not born.”

In 2013, North Dakota became the first state to pass a similar bill to protect unborn babies from abortions because of disabilities. A handful of states also ban abortions based solely on the baby’s sex.

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