Image Credit: TN General Assembly
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
A bill which would increase civil liabilities for abortion pill providers and distributors to deter the already illegal practice of sending abortifacients through the mail into the state has passed the Tennessee House, clearing the final vote it needed to become law.
The amended version of HB0005 by Rep. Gino Bulso (R-Brentwood-District 61) adds to the state’s wrongful death statutes, creating a cause of action for members of the family of an unborn child who is killed via abortion pills sent to the mother in Tennessee through the mail.
Under this legislation, if a baby is killed at any stage of gestation because of abortion-inducing drugs, the mother or any other eligible wrongful death beneficiary could bring a wrongful death suit against the distributors of the pills if they were sent into the state via “courier, delivery, or mail service”. Should the distributor be found guilty, the woman or other beneficiary would be awarded at least $1,000,000.
Rep. Bulso stated that despite the state’s enaction of the “Tennessee Abortion-Inducing Drug Risk Protocol Act” in 2022 which created a Class E felony for persons to send abortifacients into the state, the practice of mailing the abortion pills is not only continuing, but accelerating.
While the bill has been praised as strong pro-life legislation, not all those supporting protections for the unborn have been entirely convinced of its merit, with some pointing out that it creates an incentive and opportunity for women to intentionally have an abortion then profit from it.
During discussion on the House floor, Rep. Sabi “Doc” Kumar asked Bulso to address concerns about these unforeseen or unintended consequences of the legislation which he had received from numerous anti-abortion constituents expressing their objection to the bill for those reasons.
Kumar previously read aloud from an email from one of these constituents during a House committee hearing on the bill. “This law incentivizes the women in this state to successfully murder their preborn children in the womb, and if a woman can prove she successfully murdered her child using mail-order pills, this law allows a pathway to receive $5 million for doing so. We do not believe this is what any anti-abortion individual would want, and we are incentivizing abortion for somebody who has done that horrible thing, making sure they get rich,” he relayed.
Bulso disagreed with these arguments yet acknowledged that Tennessee treats a woman who has an abortion “not as a perpetrator of a crime, but as a victim. We’ve always tried to love the mother and the child. So, questions like that where you talk about the mother murdering her child, I think it’s inconsistent with the way we’ve always approached this in Tennessee.”
He also said a mindset contrary to seeing women as victims of abortion could “lead to cruelty” and stated that those opposed to the bill don’t “really understand what we’re dealing with here, because this is not easy,” referring to the complicated legal processes involved in winning a judgement from another state.
“It’s not like it’s going to be an easy pay day…I have done this many times in my 40-year legal career, and it’s difficult to get a judgement in one state, going to another state, and successfully execute on it. I can’t believe that we’re going to have women in Tennessee who are going to theorize that they can kill their unborn child and get rich,” he said.
Bulso also confirmed the intent of the bill is to provide a deterrent against abortion pill suppliers from sending them into the state, though he admitted the bill’s impact will see “immediate deterrence of some but not all abortion pill suppliers.”
How effective a deterrent this bill will make is questionable as many pills come into the state from foreign countries via a black market and distributors are either untraceable, sometimes even listing return addresses as places like local libraries, or may not be subject to Tennessee laws.
Back on the floor, Bulso echoed his previous sentiments and spoke about what he believes to be the advantages of having a bill like HB0005 which creates civil causes of action as many blue states currently employ “shield laws” to protect abortionists and pill suppliers from criminal charges.
The question on the bill was then called, and despite some Republicans voting not to close debate, the body moved to the final vote. The House voted 71-23 to pass the legislation, with Republicans Jody Barrett and John Gillespie voting “No”.
As the House conformed to the Senate version of the bill which was passed last year, it will now proceed to Gov. Lee’s desk for signature into law.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
