OKLAHOMA CITY (LifeSiteNews) – Republican Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed into law Wednesday a measure the press is calling the strictest abortion ban in the nation, on top of other tough pro-life laws that could take effect if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade in the coming weeks.
HB 4327 bans any procedure that “cause[s] the death of an unborn child” except in cases of rape, incest, or to save a mother’s life. Like the Texas Heartbeat Act, it would be enforced via civil suits brought by Oklahoma residents, punishable by at least $10,000 per abortion.
Stitt signed the law Wednesday, declaring the next day he was “proud” to do so and that “[f]rom the moment life begins at conception is when we have a responsibility as human beings to do everything we can to protect that baby’s life and the life of the mother.”
I promised Oklahomans that as governor I would sign every piece of pro-life legislation that came across my desk and I am proud to keep that promise. (1/3) pic.twitter.com/vQJdwkDJZN
— Governor Kevin Stitt (@GovStitt) May 26, 2022
That is what I believe and that is what the majority of Oklahomans believe. If other states want to pass different laws, that is their right, but in Oklahoma we will always stand up for life. (3/3)
— Governor Kevin Stitt (@GovStitt) May 26, 2022
USA Today reports that the law took effect immediately, with Oklahoma abortion centers confirming “they would stop, if they had not already, terminating pregnancies immediately upon HB 4327 taking effect.”
“Today, for the first time in nearly 50 years, abortion is illegal – at every stage of pregnancy – in an American state,” lamented Emily Wales, interim president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Plains.
The abortion industry’s uncharacteristic compliance with a pro-life law is largely due to the Supreme Court allowing the similar Texas law to take effect, though challenges to it are still working their way through the lower courts.
Stitt has previously signed a law making abortion a felony, without rape or incest exceptions, though that law’s fate ultimately rests with the U.S. Supreme Court’s impending ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which is cautiously expected to overturn Roe and restore the issue of abortion to the democratic process.
While other states are pursuing Texas-style laws as well as abortion bans predicated on detection of a fetal heartbeat, Oklahoma’s “all of the above” approach leaves it ideally prepared to protect as many babies from abortion as possible ahead of the Dobbs ruling’s eventual release.