SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — A trial date has finally been set for the lawsuit against the abortion rights ballot measure, Amendment G.
The first date for the trial is scheduled for January 27 and will last two weeks until February 7.
Anti-abortion group Life Defense Fund is suing the ballot measure sponsor, Dakotans for Health, on the grounds of invalid petition signatures. They are hoping the judge finds the ballot measure invalid, which would make any votes void.
South Dakotans will still vote on Amendment G for the upcoming November 5 election, however the fate of the vote and whether the amendment will take effect if it passes, won’t be determined until after the trial.
Life Defense Fund is hoping to skip the trial entirely by submitting a summary judgment. During an email exchange between Minnehaha County Judge John Pekas and both parties, LDF’s attorney Sara Frankenstein said the judgment would “completely dispose of the case and any need for trial.”
A motion hearing for the summary judgment is scheduled for Dec. 2.
Amendment G details abortion requirements based on a trimester framework. During the first trimester, the state would not intervene in a woman’s pregnancy or decision to abort. During the second trimester, the state may regulate abortions only for the physical health of the pregnant woman and during the third trimester, the state may prohibit an abortion except when medically necessary.
Under current South Dakota law, abortion is banned and considered a Class 6 felony punishable by up to two years in prison and up to a $4,000 fine. The only exception to the law is if there is “appropriate and reasonable medical judgment” that an abortion would save the mother’s life. There is no exception for rape or incest.
