'Fetal heartbeat law' in effect in South Carolina
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson said the state’s abortion ban is now in effect after a federal judge lifted the injunction June 27.
The so-called Fetal Heartbeat Protection from Abortion Act prohibits abortion if cardiac activity can be detected, which is around six weeks of pregnancy -- before many women know they're pregnant.
If a heartbeat is detected, an abortion can only be performed if the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest, or if the mother's life is in danger.
“The Heartbeat Law is now in effect. Once Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court, the decision on legally protecting the lives of unborn babies was returned to the states, so there was no longer any basis for blocking South Carolina’s Heartbeat Law,” Wilson said in a statement.
He continued, “Our state is now carrying out a government’s most sacred and fundamental duty, protecting life.”