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FILE – People march on 8th Street in downtown Boise, Idaho on May 3, 2022 in response to news that the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to overturn the Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide. A University of Idaho memo warning staff not to refer students to abortion or birth control providers has put the school at the center of a debate over First Amendment rights and reproductive health care. One of the laws prohibits the use of government funds to promote or support abortion or emergency contraception. Another would make it illegal for health care providers to offer abortions or birth control. (Sarah A. Miller/Idaho Statesman via AP, File)
The law makes it a felony to transport a minor to have an abortion, or even to the post office to pick up abortion pills.
An Idaho bill that would make it a felony to assist a minor seeking an out-of-state abortion has passed the state House and could pass the Senate.
HB 242 states: “An adult who, with intent to conceal an abortion from the parents or guardian of a pregnant or minor child or who performs an abortion … shall commit the crime of abortion by recruiting, retaining, or transporting a pregnant woman within this state.” The bill makes abortion a crime of human trafficking punishable by two to five years in prison.
The law does not specifically name out-of-state travel as part of that definition, but one legal expert and a co-sponsor of the bill believe it would criminalize anyone who helps children receive abortions outside the state.
“Technically, they’re not criminalizing people who drive with a minor in Washington state. The crime is when someone drives a minor in Idaho,” Drexel University law professor David Cohen told HuffPost.
“They say what they’re doing is criminalizing the whole thing in Idaho, but what they’re actually criminalizing is someone who helps minors,” said Cohen, whose work focuses on constitutional law and gender. issues, and reproductive rights.
Idaho has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country, with a trigger law that would ban all abortions and make it a crime for health care providers to perform the procedure, which takes effect in 2022.
The law includes exceptions for rape or consanguineous relationships, but pregnant women in Idaho are required to file a police report and see a doctor before terminating a pregnancy, ABC News reported.
State Representative Barbara Ehardt (R), co-sponsor of HB 242, told HuffPost that the purpose of the bill is to prevent minors from traveling outside of Idaho to obtain an abortion without parental consent: “Abortion is already illegal here in the state of Idaho. So it’s taking that child across the border, and if that’s without parental consent, that’s where we can hold those who violate parental rights accountable,” he said.
this week, Planned Parenthood Fund tweeted about the bill: “Imagine that a troubled young family member goes to a foreign country to have an abortion and is sentenced to prison for helping him. Anti-abortion politicians with ID are going to make this happen. Tell ID lawmakers to oppose this draconian law.
If the bill passes the Senate, it will head to Republican Gov. Brad Little’s desk for signature.
Idaho borders four states where abortion remains legal: California, Washington, Montana and Oregon. The Hill reports that in early 2023, the Oregon Department of Justice and local legal organizations set up a legal helpline for people seeking abortions, specifically citing the situation in Idaho.
“Even in a state like ours where abortion is legal, there has been confusion and fear since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to abortion,” Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenbloom said in a statement reported by The Hill. … this [hotline] It’s especially important because we share a border with Idaho, where abortion is generally prohibited.
In mid-March, an Idaho hospital suspended all “gynecological services” due to the state’s “legal and political climate.”
“Very respected, talented physicians are leaving. Hiring replacements will be very difficult,” read a Bonner General Hospital press release. “Furthermore, the Idaho Legislature continues to introduce and pass bills that would criminalize physicians for the provision of medical care, known nationally as the medical standard. Consequences for Idaho physicians who issue the medical standard can include civil litigation and criminal charges, jail time or fines.”
“Closing Obstetrics will not be an easy transition for our Bonner General Health teams or for our community and environment,” he concluded.
Published by permission of the American Independent Foundation.
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