Montana Governor Marc Racicot has signed a ban on certain surgical abortion procedures in the state. Violators of the ban could face up to 10 years imprisonment, a $50,000 fine, and could have their medical licenses permanently revoked.
A previous ban enacted 2 years ago was found to be unconstitutional and struck down last June after opponents convinced a court that the law was overly vague and could have been interpreted to prohibit all surgical abortions. The court also agreed that the law violated women's right to privacy.
The recent legislation described the banned surgical procedure in greater detail and includes an exemption for doctors who perform the procedure to save a pregnant woman's life.
5/20/2013 Afghan Violence Against Women Law Blocked in Parliament - On Saturday, the Speaker of the Lower House of Afghan Parliament delayed a vote on the Elimination of Violence against Women law after two hours of vociferous debate between conservative religious and more liberal members of Parliament. . . .
5/20/2013 Walmart, American Retailers Refuse to Join Bangladesh Accord - Walmart, along with 13 other major North American companies, refused to sign a legally binding agreement to improve working conditions for overseas factory workers that manufacture their clothes after a garment factory collapsed in Bangladesh killing an estimated 1300 workers, the New York Times reports.
The agreement requires retailers pay $500,000 to improve worker safety measures over a five year period. . . .
