By Howard Fischer | Arizona Capitol Times
Key Points:
- House panel approves measures critics say restrict reproductive rights in Arizona
- Measures include expanding felony murder laws to include “unborn child”
- Opponents argue the bills could have a chilling effect on legal medical care
A House panel on Jan. 21 approved three measures that foes say appear to be back-door efforts to restrict reproductive rights in Arizona despite voter approval of a constitutional amendment protecting the procedure.
In separate votes, the Judiciary Committee voted to:
- Expand laws on causing death during a felony to include an “unborn child”;
- Extend the requirements for child support to “preborn children”;
- Impose new reporting requirements on those who witness “partial-birth abortions,” a procedure that already is illegal under both state and federal law.
All three were approved by the Republican-controlled committee on party-line votes.
Proponents of each measure argued that Arizona law needs to be updated.
