HOUSE BILL No. 4552

 

 

April 27, 2017, Introduced by Reps. Cox, Cole, Sheppard, Kesto, Lucido, Leutheuser, Kahle, Hernandez, Johnson, Hornberger, Theis and Yaroch and referred to the Committee on Law and Justice.

 

     A bill to amend 1931 PA 328, entitled

 

"The Michigan penal code,"

 

by amending section 90h (MCL 750.90h), as added by 2011 PA 168.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 90h. (1) This section shall be known and may be cited as

 

the "partial-birth abortion and dismemberment abortion ban act".

 

     (2) Except as provided in subsection (3), a physician, an

 

individual performing an act, task, or function under the

 

delegatory authority of a physician, or any other individual who is

 

not a physician or not otherwise legally authorized to perform an

 

abortion who knowingly performs a partial-birth abortion or

 

dismemberment abortion and kills a human fetus is guilty of a

 

felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 2 years or a

 

fine of not more than $50,000.00, or both.

 

     (3) It is not a violation of subsection (2) if in the


physician's reasonable medical judgment a partial-birth abortion or

 

dismemberment abortion is necessary to save the life of a mother

 

whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness,

 

or physical injury.

 

     (4) The spouse of the mother at the time of the partial-birth

 

abortion or dismemberment abortion or either parent of the mother

 

if the mother had not attained the age of 18 at the time of the

 

partial-birth abortion or dismemberment abortion may file a civil

 

action against the physician or individual described in subsection

 

(2) for a violation of this section unless the pregnancy is a

 

result of the plaintiff's criminal conduct or the plaintiff

 

consented to the partial-birth abortion or dismemberment abortion.

 

A plaintiff who prevails in a civil action brought under this

 

section may recover both of the following:

 

     (a) Actual damages, including damages for emotional distress.

 

     (b) Treble damages for the cost of the partial-birth abortion

 

or dismemberment abortion.

 

     (5) A woman who obtains or seeks to obtain a partial-birth

 

abortion or dismemberment abortion is not a conspirator to commit a

 

violation of this section.

 

     (6) This section does not create a right to abortion.

 

     (7) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a

 

person shall not perform an abortion that is prohibited by law.

 

     (8) Nothing in this section shall be construed to repeal or

 

amend, explicitly or by implication, any provision of law

 

prohibiting or regulating abortion, including, but not limited to,

 

section 14, 15, 322, or 323.


     (9) As used in this section:

 

     (a) "Dismemberment abortion" means an abortion in which the

 

physician, an individual acting under the delegatory authority of

 

the physician, or any other individual performing the abortion

 

deliberately and intentionally uses any instrument, device, or

 

object to dismember a living fetus by disarticulating limbs or

 

decapitating the head from the fetal torso and removing the

 

dismembered fetal body parts from the uterus regardless of whether

 

the fetal body parts are removed by the same instrument, device, or

 

object or by suction or other means. Dismemberment abortion does

 

not include an abortion that uses suction to dismember and remove

 

the body of a fetus from the uterus.

 

     (b) (a) "Partial-birth abortion" means an abortion in which

 

the physician, an individual acting under the delegatory authority

 

of the physician, or any other individual performing the abortion

 

deliberately and intentionally vaginally delivers a living fetus

 

until, in the case of a headfirst presentation, the entire fetal

 

head is outside the body of the mother, or in the case of breech

 

presentation, any part of the fetal trunk past the naval navel is

 

outside the body of the mother, for the purpose of performing an

 

overt act that the person knows will kill the partially delivered

 

living fetus, and performs the overt act, other than completion of

 

delivery, that kills the partially delivered living fetus.

 

     (c) (b) "Physician" means an individual licensed by this state

 

to engage in the practice of medicine or the practice of

 

osteopathic medicine and surgery under article 15 of the public

 

health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.16101 to 333.18838.


     Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect January

 

1, 2018.

 

     Enacting section 2. This amendatory act does not take effect

 

unless Senate Bill No. ___ or House Bill No. ___ (request no.

 

00074'17 a) of the 99th Legislature is enacted into law.

 

     Enacting section 3. (1) Every provision in this amendatory act

 

and every application of the provisions in this amendatory act are

 

severable from each other. If any application of a provision in

 

this amendatory act to any person or group of persons or

 

circumstances is found by a court to be invalid, the remainder of

 

this amendatory act and the application of the amendatory act's

 

provisions to all other persons and circumstances shall not be

 

affected. All constitutionally valid applications of this

 

amendatory act shall be severed from any applications that a court

 

finds to be invalid, leaving the valid applications in force,

 

because it is the legislature's intent and priority that the valid

 

applications be allowed to stand alone. Even if a reviewing court

 

finds a provision of this amendatory act invalid in a large or

 

substantial fraction of relevant cases, the remaining valid

 

applications shall be severed and allowed to remain in force.

 

     (2) The provisions of this amendatory act shall be construed,

 

as a matter of state law, to be enforceable up to but no further

 

than the maximum possible extent consistent with federal

 

constitutional requirements, even if that construction is not

 

readily apparent, as such constructions are authorized only to the

 

extent necessary to save the amendatory act from judicial

 

invalidation. If any court determines that any provision of this


amendatory act is unconstitutionally vague, it shall interpret this

 

amendatory act, as a matter of state law, in a manner that avoids

 

the vagueness problem while enforcing the amendatory act's

 

provisions to the maximum possible extent consistent with federal

 

constitutional requirements.