In his quest for equal rights for the unborn, Tennessee state representative Jody Barrett (R-Dickson) has filed a proposed law that detractors believe potentially exposes pregnant women to the death penalty.
HB 570, filed by Barrett in the Tennessee House, will be heard by the Population Health Subcommittee on March 3, while State Sen. Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) introduced SB 738 to the Senate on Feb. 4.
Current penalties only apply to abortion doctors.
Barrett did not respond to requests for comment by the time of publication.
He told Newschannel 5 that it is unlikely that the death penalty would ultimately apply if the bill were to pass.
"A simple examination of the death penalty in Tennessee would show that that's just not realistic,” Barrett said. “Now, do I have to admit that the death penalty is a possibility? Sure. But since the death penalty was reinstated in Tennessee in 1977, there's been less than 200 people sentenced to death, and only 16 have actually been executed—none of them women.”
He added that there are physicians who are allegedly not obeying the law.
“There's still thousands and thousands and thousands of abortions that are occurring in Tennessee,” Barrett said. “Some through the mail with the drugs and medications that are being ordered and mailed directly to these mothers.”
Abortion pill supplier Aid Access said it received about 48,400 requests from across the United States for advance provision abortion pills.
Co-sponsors of the bill include Rep. Bud Hulsey (R-Kingsport), Rep. Monty Fritts (R-Kingston), and Rep. Ed Butler (R-Rickman).
“We’re going to take that on this year and have that discussion, and I hope that my friends and the super majority will agree with me and help me create the best bill we possibly can and get that across the finish line,” Barrett said.
Neither Hulsey, Fritts, Butler, nor Pody responded to requests for comment by the time of publication.
“The only way to do it is to acknowledge that unborn children do have the same right to life and equal protection under the Constitution,” Barrett added. “They should be constitutionally protected.”