Should Okla. Senate Override Gov.'s Veto of Bill Making Performing Abortion a Felony?
After Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin vetoed a bill that would make it a felony to perform abortions in the state and revoke the medical licenses of physicians found guilty of the act, the bill's author, State Sen. Nathan Dahm, said he is deciding whether he should seek to override the veto.
"I have not made a decision," Sen. Dahm, a Republican who represents Tulsa County, said after Fallin, also a Republican, vetoed the bill Friday, according to The Associated Press. "That's what we're pursuing, what we'd like to see accomplished."
"The bill is so ambiguous and so vague that doctors cannot be certain what medical circumstances would be considered 'necessary to preserve the life of the mother,'" Fallin said in a statement, explaining her decision.
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Dahm said he'll make a decision this week, noting that it may not be easy for those who voted for the bill to also vote for an override. "Sometimes people, even if they voted for the bill, are hesitant to vote to override the governor's veto because of their concern about the governor being petty and vindictive and vetoing some of their legislation."
Senate Bill 1552 declares the performance of an abortion, except as "necessary to preserve the life of the mother" as "unprofessional conduct" for a physician, and prohibits any physician participating in the performance of an abortion from obtaining or renewing a license to practice medicine in this State, the governor noted in the statement. It also provides for a criminal penalty for any person, including licensed physicians, who perform an abortion for any reason other than when "necessary to preserve the life of the mother," she added.
"Although Senate Bill 1552 excludes a mother's threat of self-harm from the exception preserving the life of the mother, Senate Bill 1552 does not define 'necessary to preserve the life of the mother,'" she continued. "The absence of any definition, analysis or medical standard renders this exception vague, indefinite and vulnerable to subjective interpretation and application."
She quoted the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals as stating, "Legislation which creates and provides for the punishment of criminal offenses should be so clear and explicit that all persons of ordinary intelligence who are subject to these penalties may understand their provisions. No one may be required at peril of life, liberty or property to speculate as to the meaning of penal statutes."
Fallin said the legislature has approved and she has signed no less that 18 bills supporting pro-life and pro-family values and protecting the health and lives of mothers and their unborn children during her administration.
Legal experts have warned that if the bill becomes law, it will quickly be challenged in state or federal court due to the landmark Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision in 1973 that gave women the right to obtain abortions until the fetus is viable outside the womb. However, Dahm has resounded by saying he would welcome the challenge with the hope that the Supreme Court could overturn Roe v. Wade.
The governor disagrees. "While I consistently have and continue to support a re-examination of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade, this legislation cannot accomplish that re-examination," Fallin said.
The abortion bill passed through the Oklahoma House with a vote of 59-9 last month, and made its way through the Senate with a vote of 33-12 last week.
