Louisiana GOP Bill Would Criminalize Possession Of Abortion Pills As “Controlled Dangerous Substances”

The Washington Post reports:

Louisiana could become the first state in the country to categorize mifepristone and misoprostol — the drugs used to induce an abortion — as controlled dangerous substances, threatening incarceration and fines if an individual possesses the pills without a valid prescription or outside of professional practice.

Legislators in Baton Rouge added the provision as a last-minute amendment to a Senate bill that would criminalize an abortion if someone gives a pregnant woman the pills without her consent, a scenario of “coerced criminal abortion” that nearly occurred with one senator’s sister.

The amendment, written with guidance from Louisiana Right to Life, was added after the Senate unanimously passed S.B. 276 in mid-April. The measure is awaiting a final vote in the House before the session ends June 3, with little opposition expected.

Read the full article. The bill’s author, Sen. Thomas Pressly, is a graduate of Texas Christian University. Pressly took office in January 2024.

“Louisiana moves to make abortion pills ‘controlled dangerous substances’” — horrifying and a harbinger for the sort of policy Republicans could bring to the federal level if Trump is elected. https://t.co/oMW7vyFIHa

— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) May 13, 2024