Advocates for abortion rights are increasingly alarmed by a disturbing trend: a growing number of state legislators are putting forth proposals that would enable authorities to charge individuals seeking abortions with homicide.
The Center for Reproductive Rights reports that at least ten states—Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas—are set to introduce such legislation in the upcoming 2025 session. Many of these states have already enacted strict abortion regulations, either prohibiting the procedure nearly entirely or limiting it to the first six weeks of pregnancy. Missouri and North Dakota stand out as exceptions; both previously had near-total bans that have recently been rescinded.
The proposed laws aim to redefine an embryo or fetus as an “unborn child” or “preborn child,” implying that such entities could be treated as victims of homicide. This shift could empower law enforcement to pursue criminal charges against those who seek abortions. Additionally, some of these legislative efforts seek to remove existing legal protections that currently safeguard pregnant individuals from prosecution. Limited exceptions are mentioned, such as situations where the death of a preborn child occurs unintentionally during life-saving procedures intended to protect the mother’s life, contingent on reasonable attempts to save the fetus when feasible.
Lizzy Hinkley, a senior state legislative counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights, has noted a rise in these types of bills this year, which she finds “deeply concerning.” Many of the states proposing these measures, such as South Carolina, include provisions that could lead to the death penalty.
“This is a clear strategy from the anti-abortion agenda aimed at controlling and penalizing pregnant individuals,” Hinkley states.
Currently, three of these bills—in Indiana, North Dakota, and Oklahoma—have not advanced. Mary Ziegler, an expert in abortion law at the University of California, Davis, believes the likelihood of the remaining bills passing is “relatively low.” Such proposals often lack widespread support; even among conservatives and anti-abortion advocates, there is disagreement over punishing those who seek abortions.
“Nevertheless, I think these bills are more likely to gain traction now than they have in previous years, and their continued presence is significant,” Ziegler remarks. She emphasizes that the introduction of these bills has surged since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which revoked the constitutional right to abortion.
Historically, anti-abortion legislation has focused on medical providers who offer abortion services. For instance, on March 17, the Texas attorney general reported the arrest of a midwife accused of providing illegal abortions—the first such charges in Texas since the Dobbs ruling. Additionally, a New York doctor is facing a civil lawsuit in Texas and criminal charges in Louisiana for allegedly prescribing abortion pills via telemedicine to patients in those states.
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The recent bills also include language regarding fetal personhood—a legal concept central to the reproductive rights debate that seeks to grant legal rights to embryos and fetuses. On his first day in office, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order asserting that the U.S. government recognizes only “two sexes, male and female.” Critics within the abortion rights community cautioned that this order carries implications of fetal personhood by asserting that sex is assigned “at conception.”
Hinkley highlights that research indicates a rise in pregnancy-related criminalization following the Dobbs ruling. A report from Pregnancy Justice, a nonprofit dedicated to safeguarding the rights of pregnant individuals, found that over 210 pregnant individuals faced criminal charges linked to their pregnancies in the year after the Dobbs decision, marking the highest number recorded in a single year. Hinkley suggests that this report “foreshadowed what we are witnessing now.”
“Regardless of whether these bills pass this year, they are likely to resurface in the following years,” Hinkley asserts. “Not long ago, the notion of a complete abortion ban without exceptions for rape and incest seemed far-fetched. However, this is the reality facing pregnant individuals across the country today. Whether it’s this year, next year, or in the future, this reflects a troubling trend regarding the ultimate intentions of anti-abortion lawmakers and activists.”
