COLUMBIA, S.C. — A House bill that potentially could sentence a woman to death for having an abortion has very low odds, or maybe no chance, of actually passing, South Carolina legislative leaders say.
A bill proposed by state Rep. Rob Harris, R-Spartanburg, a freshmen member who is part of the conservative Freedom Caucus, would allow a person having an abortion to be punished like any murder, leading to sentences of 30 years in prison up to the death penalty.
The bill explicitly exempts from prosecution a woman who receives an abortion if “she was compelled to do so by the threat of imminent death or great bodily injury.”
