Abortion in Colorado would be banned after 22 weeks through an initiativeadvocates hope to place on statewide ballots next year.
The only exception would be if a doctor determines a mother’s life is at risk. In all other cases, performing an abortion after 22 weeks would be a class 3 felony, on par with second-degree murder or vehicular homicide and punishable by up to a dozen years in prison.
The proposed initiative was filed Friday by Erin Behrens and Giuliana Day. Behrens said on Facebook that she began pushing legislators for a late-term abortion ban 10 months ago, when she was in the advanced stages of pregnancy. Dismayed by Republicans unable to pass restrictions and Democrats unwilling to, she opted for a ballot initiative instead.
“A few years ago, I found out that Colorado is one of the few places in the world where abortion is legal up to birth for any reason,” Behrens told The Denver Post on Tuesday. “It did not make sense that we would allow this, while 43 other states, including California and New York, did not.”
The state’s title board will consider the proposed initiative June 19. Proponents of what would be called Initiative 108 cannot print petitions or collect signatures until the board signs off.
Read the full story in The Denver Post.
