Skip to content Skip to search

Republish This Story

* Please read before republishing *

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives Creative Commons license as long as you follow our republishing guidelines, which require that you credit The 19th and retain our pixel. See our full guidelines for more information.

To republish, simply copy the HTML at right, which includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to The 19th. Have questions? Please email [email protected].

— The Editors

Loading...

Modal Gallery

/
Sign up for our newsletter

Menu

  • Our Mission
  • Our Team
  • Latest Stories
  • Search
  • Upcoming Events
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Work With Us
  • Fellowships
    • From the Collection

      Changing Child Care

      Illustration of a woman feeding a baby a bottle
      • 1 in 4 parents report being fired for work interruptions due to child care breakdowns

        Chabeli Carrazana · February 2
      • Washington, D.C., offers financial relief to local child care workers

        Orion Rummler · September 20
      • As climate change worsens hurricane season in Louisiana, doulas are ensuring parents can safely feed their babies

        Jessica Kutz · May 5
    • From the Collection

      Next-Gen GOP

      Illustration of a woman riding an elephant
      • Mayra Flores’ victory set a record for women in Congress. It also reflects the growing visibility of Republican Latinas

        Candice Norwood · June 21
      • A banner year for Republican women

        Amanda Becker · November 11
      • Republican women could double representation in the U.S. House

        Amanda Becker · November 4
    • From the Collection

      On The Rise

      Illustration of three women marching
      • Can Cheri Beasley build a winning coalition in North Carolina?

        Candice Norwood · October 11
      • Los Angeles has never elected a woman mayor. Karen Bass hopes to change that.

        Nadra Nittle · September 8
      • Judge J. Michelle Childs is confirmed to D.C. appeals court

        Candice Norwood · July 20
    • From the Collection

      Pandemic Within a Pandemic

      Illustration of four people marching for Black Lives Matter with coronavirus as the backdrop
      • Some LGBTQ+ people worry that the COVID-19 vaccine will affect HIV medication. It won’t.

        Orion Rummler · November 23
      • Why are more men dying from COVID? It’s a complicated story of nature vs. nurture, researchers say

        Mariel Padilla · September 22
      • Few incarcerated women were released during COVID. The ones who remain have struggled.

        Candice Norwood · August 17
    • From the Collection

      Portraits of a Pandemic

      Illustration of a woman wearing a mask and holding up the coronavirus
      • For family caregivers, COVID is a mental health crisis in the making

        Shefali Luthra · October 8
      • A new database tracks COVID-19’s effects on sex and gender

        Shefali Luthra · September 15
      • Pregnant in a pandemic: The 'perfect storm for a crisis'

        Shefali Luthra · August 25
    • From the Collection

      The 19th Explains

      People walking from many articles to one article where they can get the context they need on an issue.
      • The 19th Explains: What we know about Brittney Griner’s case and what it took to get her home

        Candice Norwood, Katherine Gilyard · December 8
      • The 19th Explains: Why the Respect for Marriage Act doesn’t codify same-sex marriage rights

        Kate Sosin · December 8
      • The 19th Explains: Why baby formula is still hard to find months after the shortage

        Mariel Padilla · December 1
    • From the Collection

      The Electability Myth

      Illustration of three women speaking at podiums
      • Mayra Flores’ victory set a record for women in Congress. It also reflects the growing visibility of Republican Latinas

        Candice Norwood · June 21
      • Stepping in after tragedy: How political wives became widow lawmakers

        Mariel Padilla · May 24
      • Do term limits help women candidates? New York could be a new testing ground

        Barbara Rodriguez · January 11
    • From the Collection

      The Impact of Aging

      A number of older people walking down a path of information.
      • From ballroom dancing to bloodshed, the older AAPI community grapples with gun control

        Nadra Nittle, Mariel Padilla · January 27
      • 'I'm planning on working until the day I die': Older women voters are worried about the future

        Mariel Padilla · June 3
      • Climate change is forcing care workers to act as first responders

        Jessica Kutz · May 31
    • From the Collection

      Voting Rights

      A series of hands reaching for ballots.
      • Connecticut voters approved early voting. Here’s how their new secretary of state wants to make it happen.

        Barbara Rodriguez · February 13
      • Women lawmakers in Minnesota are in the vanguard of the democracy movement

        Barbara Rodriguez · February 3
      • Election workers believe in our system — and want everyone else to, too

        Barbara Rodriguez, Jennifer Gerson · November 8

    View all collections

  • Explore by Topic

    • 19th Polling
    • Abortion
    • Business & Economy
    • Caregiving
    • Coronavirus
    • Education
    • Election 2020
    • Election 2022
    • Election 2024
    • Environment & Climate
    • Health
    • Immigration
    • Inside The 19th
    • Justice
    • LGBTQ+
    • Military
    • Politics
    • Press Release
    • Race
    • Sports
    • Technology

    View All Topics

Home
  • Our Mission
  • Our Team
  • Latest Stories
  • Search
  • Upcoming Events
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Work With Us
  • Fellowships

We’re an independent, nonprofit newsroom reporting on gender, politics and policy. Read our story.

The 19th News(letter)

News from reporters who represent you and your communities.

Please check your email to confirm your subscription!

Submitting...

Uh-oh! Something went wrong. Please try again later.

Become a member

The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.

Protestors hold signs and look through a viewing window at the Indiana Capitol building.
Abortion-rights protesters chant during a session of the Indiana state Senate, reflected in a viewing window, at the Capitol on July 25, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Jon Cherry/Getty Images)

Abortion

How Indiana’s abortion ban maintained rape and incest exceptions

After hours of debate, lawmakers voted 18-28 this week to keep the rape and incest exceptions in the bill. Republicans were divided on the issue.

Mariel Padilla

General Assignment Reporter

Mariel Padilla portrait

Published

2022-07-29 16:47
4:47
July 29, 2022
pm

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana senators voted 26-20 on Saturday to advance a bill that bans nearly all abortions except in cases of rape, incest or when the parent’s life is at risk. Those exceptions had to survive a drawn-out challenge during the amendment process.

Days prior, the senators had convened to consider amendments to a bill that no one was happy with when it passed out of the Committee on Rules and Legislative Procedure on Tuesday. Republicans and Democrats alike critized the proposed legislation, some arguing it didn’t go far enough to restrict abortion and others arguing it went too far.

The heated debate during the committee review and the amendment process demonstrated strong divisions in the Republican Party and the wide range of opinion over how far abortion restrictions should go.

The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.

The Republicans hoped that bringing the draft to the full Senate would help clarify the legislation, close any loopholes and satisfy their constituents. More than 60 members of the public testified for hours on Monday to Tuesday to voice their critiques, leading to frustration from the bill’s author, Sen. Sue Glick. 

“Am I happy with the bill? Not exactly,” Glick said at the time. “Nor was I happy when it was drafted. … We’ll bring it to the floor so we can discuss it in detail, and if it’s the will of the body to kill the bill on the floor — then so be it.” 

About half of those who testified, including all of the anti-abortion organizations that were represented, were against the bill because they felt it didn’t go far enough to restrict abortions and did not include an adequate enforcement measure. Many medical professionals argued that the language was too vague, making it hard for them to both provide care and avoid criminal charges. Others who testified in opposition to the bill said that any infringement on a person’s ability to make their own health care decisions was a government overreach. 

  • More from The 19th
    A woman holds a sign at a protest in Indianapolis.
  • Indiana opens special session to debate near-total abortion ban
  • Dozens of clinics have dropped abortion services since Roe v. Wade was overturned
  • Indiana Senate committee advances near-total abortion ban after eight hours of public testimony

Sen. Ed Charbonneau, a Republican on the committee, said he hoped the full Senate and any amendments would make a “bad bill less bad.”

The full Senate convened on Thursday to consider 62 filed amendments, the highest number several of the lawmakers said they had seen for one bill.  The session was delayed by nearly four hours as Republicans met behind closed doors. Then, for more than seven hours, Democrat and Republican senators alike discussed, argued and occasionally called for more decorum when the conversation became emotional and personal. 

One amendment, however, took center stage: one that would remove the rape and incest exceptions and only allow abortions that threatened the life of the pregnant person. 

“Exceptions equal death,” said Republican Sen. Michael Young, who introduced the amendment. 

More than two and a half hours of tearful debate, questioning and statements revealed that Democrats were united to keep the rape and incest exceptions in the abortion ban, while Republicans were divided down the middle.

“This is the most important issue in our lifetime,” Young said in his closing remarks before the vote. “And whatever we decide here tonight, we will be judged by what we did. We have to do the right thing.” 

Stories by experienced reporters you can trust and relate to.

Delivered directly to your inbox every weekday.

Please check your email to confirm your subscription!

Submitting…

Uh-oh! Something went wrong. Please try again later.

The amendment failed to pass with an 18-28 vote. 

Though 62 amendments were filed and dozens were discussed on Thursday, nearly 30 were rejected and only four amendments were passed. Several amendments had already been passed in committee on Tuesday, including added criminal charges to doctors who illegally perform abortions, an eight-week limit on when victims of rape could obtain an abortion (12 weeks for minors) and a requirement that victims of rape sign an affidavit before terminating their pregnancies. 

Of those passed on Thursday, one gave the attorney general authority to enforce a law if a prosecuting attorney is “categorically refusing” to do so. Republican Sen. Aaron Freeman introduced the amendment, citing the Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears, a Democrat, who said in June that his office would not prosecute women or doctors who sought or performed abortions. 

“The prosecutor’s office in the state of Indiana is to prosecute all crimes,” Freeman said. “Their job is not to pick and choose which laws they’re going to enforce. If they want to do that, I would recommend they run for state legislature and begin passing laws that they want to either have or not.” 

Senate Minority Leader Sen. Greg Taylor, a Democrat, said that the body had already voted down this measure the year before. Taylor said passing it in a special session was troubling to him, particularly given the current attorney general is currently facing a lawsuit filed by the doctor who provided abortion for the 10-year-old girl from Ohio. 

“That is flat out wrong,” Taylor said, adding that it failed to pass last session because prosecutors spoke out against it. “[Freeman’s] going to take prosecutorial discretion away by saying the attorney general at any time has concurrent jurisdiction over those prosecutors. That’s bad. Shame on us.” 

Another added amendment, introduced by Democratic Sen. Timothy Lanane, tweaked the requirement for victims of incest: if the victim is a minor, there is no longer a requirement to obtain consent from a parent or guardian. A third amendment, introduced by Democrat Sen. Jean Breaux, authorized the statewide maternal mortality review committee “shall study how changes in the state’s abortion laws affect maternal mortality.” And the fourth amendment, introduced by Republican Sen. Liz Brown, requires that the affidavit signed by rape victims is notarized. 

Amendments that did not pass include: a requirement that pregnancy resource centers to be licensed; the expansion of telehealth services to abortion medication; the creation of a review panel to deal with complaints against physicians that would then direct the attorney general’s office to enforce; one that would ensure access to housing for pregnant and post-partum women with a child under one; a requirement that perpetrators of rape pay child support until their child turns 18; and another that would put the issue of abortion on the ballot for voters to decide its legality. 

The bill is expected to head to the House next week. According to Indiana code, the special session has to conclude by August 14.

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email

The 19th News(letter)

News from reporters who represent you and your communities.

Please check your email to confirm your subscription!

Submitting...

Uh-oh! Something went wrong. Please try again later.

Become a member

Up Next

A group of people holding various signs protesting abortion restrictions.

Abortion

West Virginia’s proposed abortion ban requires minors to wait 48 hours even for ectopic pregnancy

The bill’s text is unclear, but multiple legal and policy experts — and the state’s sole abortion provider — said a 48-hour waiting period for minors seeking abortions could risk the lives of patients.

Read the Story

The 19th
The 19th is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Our stories are free to republish in accordance with these guidelines.

  • Donate
  • Newsletter
  • Events
  • Search
  • Jobs
  • Fellowships
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Community Guidelines
  • Membership
  • Membership FAQ
  • Major Gifts
  • Sponsorship
  • Privacy
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram