Missouri Republicans propose bills to allow murder charges for people who get abortions

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Missouri Republican lawmakers are pushing a pair of bills that would allow for women to be charged with murder for getting an abortion in the state.

The pieces of legislation would give fetuses the same rights as human beings, which would allow for criminal charges to be filed against anyone who gets an abortion, helps someone get an abortion or provides abortion care in the state, which implemented a near-total ban on the procedure after last year’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

Republicans state Sen. Mike Moon from Ash Grove and state Rep. Bob Titus from Billings pre-filed the bills last Friday ahead of next year’s legislative session, which begins next month.

The bills, both called the “Abolition of Abortion in Missouri Act,” do not state explicitly whether getting an abortion in another state would be illegal. While abortion is banned in Missouri in nearly all circumstances, the procedure is still available in bordering states Kansas and Illinois.

The bills do allow for a “duress” defense if a woman is charged with murder for getting an abortion. They also do not allow for criminal charges for “lawful” medical procedures performed by a doctor and if an abortion is performed to save the patient’s life or if a doctor accidentally aborts a fetus during a life-saving procedure.

The Republican-led bills come as abortion rights advocates in Missouri try to get a measure restoring some form of abortion on the state ballot in 2024.

The legislation indicates that some Missouri Republicans are pushing forward on expanding the state’s near-total ban on abortion in the next legislative session even as the ban has been criticized for ushering in a chaotic and uncertain era for women and doctors.

While Missouri remains staunchly conservative, abortion rights remain popular. Polling conducted last year by Saint Louis University and British pollster YouGov showed that a majority of Missourians were in favor of some level of legal abortion and disagreed with the state’s ban on abortion.

“While the mainstream anti-abortion movement tries to publicly distance themselves from the politically and socially unpopular insistence to criminally punish people for accessing abortion care, these bills are a stepping stone for a small fringe group of extremists to intentionally criminalize people seeking abortions,” said Mallory Schwarz, the executive director of Abortion Action Missouri.

Schwarz, in a statement, pointed to a group called Abolish Abortion Missouri, which she said was behind the bills. This group, she said, “is also the source of threatening harassment targeted at abortion patients, providers, and Abortion Action Missouri clinic escorts on a daily basis.”

The bills, Schwarz said, create new ways to police people based on their pregnancy outcomes, arguing that “pregnant people around the country are being targeted, prosecuted, and jailed in instances of abortion and even miscarriages.”

If Missouri lawmakers approve Titus’ bill, it would go into effect if signed by Republican Gov. Mike Parson. Moon’s bill would have to be approved by Missouri voters.

Titus, in a phone interview, said the “taking of an innocent is the taking of innocent life,” arguing that the goal of his bill was not about punishing anybody. But, he said, “if you’re going to treat babies as humans and people then the penalties for taking an innocent life should be commensurate with that.”

“That a mother would take her own child’s life to me is unconscionable,” he said. “I’m not a mother but I have ten children and I value them greatly. It’s inconceivable that a mother would knowingly do that. If it’s not an act of murder, then what is it?”

Moon did not respond to calls and requests for comment on Thursday.

While advocates are pushing for an abortion rights proposal in 2024, they have not unified behind one version of the measure and face a tight deadline to get it on the ballot.

Both Republican-led bills will face a steep climb during this year’s legislative session as the state’s abortion ban faces intense criticism and has energized abortion rights supporters. They also don’t have the backing of at least one prominent anti-abortion lobbyist in Jefferson City, Sam Lee. One of the state’s top anti-abortion groups, Missouri Right to Life, also opposed a nearly identical bill from Moon last session.

“There is nothing pro-life whatsoever about legislation that would allow the death penalty for a woman who undergoes an abortion or any other person who performs an abortion on her,” Lee said in a text to The Star.

If the bills get committee hearings, Lee said, “we will vigorously testify against them and strongly urge other members of the legislature to vote them down.”

Moon, a hard-right senator, is known for his extreme and fringe views within the General Assembly, including comments this year suggesting that children as young as 12 should be able to get married as he pushed legislation that would ban gender-affirming care for minors.

With the upcoming 2024 election in November, the issue of abortion rights and the state’s ban on the procedure could be major flashpoints during next year’s legislative session which begins Jan. 3.

Another Republican, state Rep. Brian Seitz from Branson also pre-filed a bill that would give fetuses the same protections as human beings — but his bill does not explicitly address criminal actions.

Missouri Democrats have also pre-filed bills to repeal the state’s ban on abortion or to clarify that the ban does not affect access to birth control.