By Terry Vanderheyden
SIOUX FALLS, South Dakota, March 9, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota (PPMNS) said it will defy a law passed Monday that bans all abortions in the state.
“We will not abandon the women of South Dakota,” said Sarah Stoesz, PPMNS President and CEO, according to a release. “Our clinics in South Dakota will remain open and we will continue to serve the women and men of this state by providing family planning services, emergency contraception, and safe, legal abortion care.”
On Monday, South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds signed into law the first abortion ban in the United States since the 1973 Supreme Court Roe vs. Wade decision. The bill, House Bill 1215, passed with strong bi-partisan support in both houses and makes abortion a felony in the state, punishable by up to five years imprisonment. It is to go into effect this July.
Stoesz also vowed to challenge the new law in court. “Planned Parenthood will challenge this law in order to protect the health and rights of the women and families we serve,” she said.
Meanwhile, a South Dakota pro-life advocate who was instrumental in promoting the law there was the victim of harassment and vandalism. Leslee Unruh, who founded the Alpha Center to encourage pregnant women to choose life, told Focus on the Family’s CitizenLink news that her family has become a target from pro-abortion zealots.
Unruh related to CitizenLink how her home has been splattered with eggs and that coat hangers have been left in their mailbox. Her husband’s chiropractic office has also been targeted by pro-aborts leaving dead animals on the grounds, with some employees afraid to come into work. She was even told by her favorite coffee shop not to come back.
“They said, ‘We have a choice as to who we serve, and we choose not to serve you,’” she related. “They were careful to emphasize the word ‘choice.’”
See CitizenLink coverage:
https://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039731.cfm
See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Abortion Ban Signed into Law by South Dakota Governor
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/mar/06030603.html
Complete Ban on Abortion Passes South Dakota Legislature, goes to Governor
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/feb/06022304.html