Abortion case pushed to December
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – The next hearing for the case against Amendment G, the abortion rights ballot measure, has been pushed to December, with no trial date in sight.
"... This matter will not be completed before the election," Judge John Pekas said in an email to both the plaintiff, Life Defense Fund, and defendant, Dakotans for Health.
This means South Dakotans will still vote on the ballot measure, which deems abortion a state constitutional right under a trimester framework. Regardless of the election's outcome though, the amendment may be invalidated, votes would be void and the amendment would not take effect like other ballot measures that passed.
The trial was supposed to begin September 23, but scheduling conflicts and judge reassignments pushed it off. During the email exchange with both parties and the Second Judicial Circuit, Life Defense Fund expressed a desire to go to trial before the election.
"We do ask that the trial be conducted in October in order for the court to rule before Election Day on November 5," said LDF's attorney, Sara Frankenstein in an email to the court.
Within the email thread, Frankenstein also said she would be filing a summary judgment which would "completely dispose of the case and any need for trial." A motion hearing for the summary judgment is scheduled for Dec. 2, nearly a month after the election.
Dakotans for Health's attorney Jim Leach said the summary, affidavits and other materials Life Defense Fund submitted are nearly 500 pages long and he would need more time to prepare his response for a trial. On September 18, Judge Pekas weighed in and agreed, giving Leach until November 18 to submit his response. Life Defense Fund will have 30 days after that to reply.
Life Defense Fund sued Dakotans for Health in June on the grounds of invalid petition signatures, hoping to get the amendment removed from the ballot.
Under current South Dakota law, abortion is banned and considered a Class 6 felony punishable by up to two years in prison and up to a $4,000 fine. The only exception to the law is if there is "appropriate and reasonable medical judgment" that an abortion would save the mother's life. There is no exception for rape or incest.
