The United States Supreme Court announced today (June 24, 2022) it has overturned the landmark Roe vs. Wade decision that has provided Constitutional protection for the past 50 years for those seeking abortions.
South Dakota’s trigger law, found in SDCL 22-17-5.1, provides that as of today, all abortions are illegal in South Dakota “unless there is appropriate and reasonable medical judgment that performance of an abortion is necessary to preserve the life of the pregnant female.”
In response to Court’s ruling in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem announced plans for a special session later this year, although the exact dates need to be worked out with legislative leadership.
Noem says the decision “will save unborn lives in South Dakota, but there is more work to do.” She says “we must do what we can to help mothers in crisis know that there are options and resources available for them.”
South Dakota Right to Life Executive Director Dale Bartscher says his group “will continue helping women navigate pregnancies they did not plan for as we remind South Dakotan’s that the pro-life movement cares about women and their unborn children.”
Senate President Pro Tempore Lee Schoenbeck says a special session is necessary because “there will be more work to do on the many challenges a post-Roe world presents in regular session next January.”
House Speaker Pro Tempore Jon Hansen says “an abortion terminates the life of a whole, separate, unique, living human being.” He says now South Dakota can “once again protect the lives of all beautiful, innocent, unborn human beings.”
