[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 1833 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1833

 To amend title 18, United States Code, to ban partial-birth abortions.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 14, 1995

Mr. Canady of Florida (for himself, Mrs. Vucanovich, Mr. Hall of Ohio, 
  Mr. Hyde, Mr. Inglis of South Carolina, Mr. Goodlatte, Mr. Smith of 
 Texas, Mrs. Smith of Washington, Mr. Weldon of Florida, Mr. Smith of 
 New Jersey, Mr. Christensen, Mr. Dornan, Mr. Hilleary, Mr. Bunning of 
   Kentucky, Mr. Chabot, Mr. Emerson, Mr. Hayworth, Mr. Largent, Mr. 
    Walsh, Mr. Knollenberg, Mr. Talent, Mr. Watts of Oklahoma, Mrs. 
 Seastrand, Mr. Barton of Texas, Mr. Bryant of Tennessee, Mr. Young of 
    Arkansas, Mr. Lewis of Kentucky, Mr. Stearns, and Mr. McIntosh) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 18, United States Code, to ban partial-birth abortions.
    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 
1995''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON PARTIAL-BIRTH ABORTIONS.
    (a) In General.--Title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting after chapter 73 the following:
                 ``CHAPTER 74--PARTIAL-BIRTH ABORTIONS
``Sec.
``1531Partial-birth abortions prohibited.
``Sec. 1531 Partial-birth abortions prohibited
    ``(a) Whoever, in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce, 
knowingly performs a partial-birth abortion and thereby kills a human 
fetus shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two 
years, or both.
    ``(b) As used in this section, the term `partial-birth abortion' 
means an abortion in which the person performing the abortion partially 
vaginally delivers a living fetus before killing the fetus and 
completing the delivery.
    ``(c)(1) The mother, father, and if the mother has not attained the 
age of 18 years at the time of the abortion, the maternal grandparents 
of the fetus, may in a civil action obtain appropriate relief.
    ``(2) Such relief shall include--
            ``(A) money damages for all injuries, psychological and 
        physical, occasioned by the violation of this section; and
            ``(B) statutory damages equal to three times the cost of 
        the partial-birth abortion;
even if any party consented to the performance of an abortion.
    ``(d) A woman upon whom a partial-birth abortion is performed may 
not be prosecuted under this section for a conspiracy to violate this 
section, or an offense under section 2, 3, or 4 of this title based on 
a violation of this section.
    ``(e) It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution or a civil 
action under this section, which must be proved by a preponderance of 
the evidence, that the partial-birth abortion was performed by a 
physician who reasonably believed--
            ``(1) the partial-birth abortion was necessary to save the 
        life of the woman upon whom it was performed; and
            ``(2) no other form of abortion would suffice for that 
        purpose.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of chapters for part I of title 
18, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating 
to chapter 73 the following new item:

``74. Partial-birth abortions...............................    1531''.
                                 <all>