Sunday, November 23, 2008
The General Assembly is not in session.
Tracking Virginia’s General Assembly
since 2007.
HB429: Abortion; forced or coerced prohibited, penalty.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered 18.2-71.2 as follows:
§ 18.2-71.2. Forced or coerced abortion prohibited; penalty.
Any person who through force, threat or intimidation forces or coerces a pregnant female to have an abortion against her will is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. However, if the violation of this section is committed against a pregnant female who is less than 18 years of age, the person is guilty of a Class 6 felony.
2. That the provisions of this act may result in a net increase in periods of imprisonment or commitment. Pursuant to § 30-19.1:4, the estimated amount of the necessary appropriation cannot be determined for periods of imprisonment in state adult correctional facilities and is $0 for periods of commitment to the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered 18.2-71.2 as follows:
§ 18.2-71.2. Forced or coerced abortion prohibited; penalty.
A. Any person who forces or coerces a pregnant female of any age to have an abortion against her will is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. However, if a violation of this section is committed by the father or putative father of the unborn child when the pregnant female is less than 18 years of age, and the father or putative father is 18 years of age or older, the father or putative father is guilty of a Class 6 felony.
B. Upon the request of the female victim, a law-enforcement agency investigating a violation of this section shall notify the female not less than 24 hours before initially contacting the person alleged to have committed a violation of this section.
C. Any female who is forced or coerced to have an abortion shall be entitled to bring a civil action in tort against the person who forced or coerced her to have an abortion, within one year of her 18th birthday or, if the female is more than 18 years of age at the time of the abortion, within one year of the date of the abortion. In addition to the action for herself, the female shall have a cause of action for wrongful death of the unborn child against the person who forced or coerced her to have an abortion.
D. For the purposes of the section, the term "forces or coerces" means any act or attempted act including a threat of physical, emotional, pecuniary, or psychological harm intended to compel a pregnant female to have an abortion performed in otherwise lawful circumstances but performed against her will.
2. That the provisions of this act may result in a net increase in periods of imprisonment or commitment. Pursuant to § 30-19.1:4, the estimated amount of the necessary appropriation cannot be determined for periods of imprisonment in state adult correctional facilities and is $0 for periods of commitment to the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Additional Data
Explanation
This is the actual text of the bill — the legislation itself. Generally this is amending existing law, proposing the addition or removal of words from laws that are already on the books.
Words that are highlighted in yellow are
proposed additions, and words that are crossed out in
red are proposed removals.
The numbers with the § symbol before them are references to existing laws, and if you click on them they’ll take you to that part of the law on the state's website.