Wyoming governor signs ‘well-intended’ but ‘fragile’ heartbeat law on abortion

Wyoming’s governor enacted what he called a “well-intended” but ultimately “fragile” ban on abortions of unborn children with a detectable heartbeat.

The legislative liaison for the Diocese of Cheyenne, Wyoming’s only Roman Catholic diocese, expressed support for the new law despite its shortcomings.

On March 9, Gov. Mark Gordon, a Republican, signed into law the Human Heartbeat Act, which makes it a felony to perform abortions where an unborn child’s cardiac activity can be detected with standard medical equipment. Penalties include up to five years’ imprisonment and up to $10,000 in fines, as well as mandatory revocation of a guilty party’s professional license.

According to the law, “if, in reasonable medical judgment, a medical emergency exists” for the mother, a licensed physician is permitted to “terminate the pregnancy” even if the baby’s cardiac activity is present.

Even in that situation, the physician must approach any medical intervention “in the manner that provides the best opportunity for the unborn child to survive,” unless “a greater risk of death or substantial and irreversible physical impairment to the pregnant woman” would be incurred.

Gordon, who describes himself as “pro-life, with exceptions,” expressed concern that the new law would not survive a legal challenge under the state’s “current constitutional framework,” with Wyoming’s Supreme Court recently removing abortion restrictions in a ruling on the case State v. Johnson.

In a signing letter to state House Speaker Rep. Chip Neiman, a Republican, Gordon affirmed that “life is sacred” — but said the act doesn’t offer the “durable solution I had hoped for” despite the “upright, moral intentions” behind it, and “very likely puts us back in the all too familiar and unfortunate territory of pro-life litigation.”

Gordon explained that the “central obstacle” lies in the state Supreme Court’s conclusion in State v. Johnson that abortion is a “fundamental right” under state laws allowing adults to make their own health care decisions.

“Whether we agree with that interpretation or not, it is the current constitutional framework governing abortion policy in Wyoming,” Gordon wrote to Neiman. “Thus, it will take a constitutional amendment (or narrowly crafted solution) to define that balance.”

He added, “We cannot ignore or disregard the legal complexity of abortion policy in Wyoming. The State must protect unborn life while acting carefully within the constraints of the Wyoming Constitution and court decisions.”

While affirming his “pro-life stance,” Gordon also lamented that the law does not include specific exceptions in the cases of rape or incest, for which he has “continually” advocated.

Deacon Mike Leman, the Diocese of Cheyenne’s legislative liaison and executive director of Catholic social teaching and communications, told OSV News, “The diocese did support the bill on the grounds that the Wyoming Supreme Court, in its decision of the State vs. Johnson, acknowledged two things.”

First, he said, “the state did not meet its burden of proving that our two former laws restricting abortion were constitutional.”

And secondly, he added, “the court acknowledged that the state does have an interest in protecting the lives that abortion ends.”

Deacon Leman also pointed to a state of the judiciary address given earlier this year by Wyoming’s Chief Justice Lynne Boomgaarden, who stressed that the “Legislature has the last word,” and can create or amend laws when a court has “reached a result that is unpopular.”

The Catholic Church teaches that human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the first moment of conception, and since the first century has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion.

Church officials in the U.S. continue to stress concern for both mother and child, and have called for strengthening support for those particularly at risk of seeking an abortion due to poverty, intimate partner violence and other factors.

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