Missouri lawmakers Thursday passed a bill to tighten restrictions on late-term abortion sending the measure to the desk of Gov. Jay Nixon for his signature. The Show Me State becomes latest of many states across the country where Republican leaders swept into office in the 2010 midterm elections are remaking abortion laws, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Friday.
The bill bans abortions after 20 weeks of gestation with the exceptions of if the fetus is not viable or in the case of a medical emergency. It would make it a felony for doctors to perform the procedure. If convicted, the doctor would face a minimum of one-year in jail and a fine as much as $50,000.
House Majority Floor Leader
Tim Jones, R-Eureka, pushed the bill through the House, called the measure "common sense, constitutionally defensible legislation."
"If you enjoy tax revenue and you enjoy continued support of the state, you should support this bill," Jones said. "If you support life in all its forms, you should support this bill.
"The question is whether you support the barbaric practice of ripping a child from the mother's womb in the late term and slaughtering it.”
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