The Connecticut state legislature is working on a pro-abortion counter to states like Texas and Idaho, which leave legal liability for abortions with doctors who perform the procedure.
The Texas and Idaho laws ban abortions when a heartbeat is detected — at about six weeks — and allow private parties to sue abortionists and other facilitators of abortions.
The Connecticut law — HB 5414 — which passed the state’s House 87-60 with the help of seven Republicans and is heading to the Democrat-controlled Senate, would give abortionists in states with similar laws to those in Texas and Idaho a legal shield if they were to flee to the Constitution State.
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) has voiced support for the law, saying abortion bans are part of the “cultural wars” against women.
“The culture wars are lapping up across our shores here in Connecticut, and we’re standing together,” he said Tuesday. “We’re making sure that when it comes to our women, when it comes to our choice, when it comes to these cultural wars, we stand on behalf of the women in the state of Connecticut, and that’s not gonna change.”
If an abortionist is found guilty in Texas, for example, but flees to Connecticut to escape, current Connecticut law would require the state to extradite the abortionist back to Texas to face the consequences.
With the new measure, Connecticut would effectively give refuge to abortionists trying to escape justice in states with similar laws to Texas and Idaho.
Moreover, if someone who is being sued in another state for aiding and abetting an abortion seeks to facilitate the procedure in Connecticut, the new measure would allow them to countersue.
The bill, which was written by state Rep. Matt Blumenthal (D) — son of U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) — and state Rep. Jillian Gilchrest (D), could prove to provide an example to other pro-abortion states that want to take on bans in other states. It will also likely create legal challenges regarding whether one state can effectively regulate activity in another state.
“As states around the country pass extreme laws seeking to penalize or ban abortion rights, I’m proud that CT continues to be a leader on reproductive rights,” Blumenthal said on Twitter.
If passed, the bill would go into effect July 1 — after the U.S. Supreme Court hears Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, an abortion lawsuit out of Mississippi that many believe has the potential to significantly weaken or even overturn Roe v. Wade.
With the prospect of Roe being weakened, many Republican-led states are looking to implement stronger restrictions on abortions.
Breccan F. Thies is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter @BreccanFThies.