Assisted Suicide Defeated in Hawaii State Legislative Sessions Coming to an End.(Brief Article)

An already solid session in state legislatures around the country became a ?10? on May 2 when an Oregon-like assisted suicide proposal was defeated after three Hawaiian state senators switched their votes.

The 13-12 vote in favor of the measure became 11-14 against when state senators Rod Tam, Donna Mercado Kim, and Bob Hogue, who had earlier voted for the bill, changed their votes to oppose the measure. (One senator changed from opposing the bill to supporting it.)

Strongly supported by Gov. Ben Cayetano, the bill had already been approved by the state House. (For complete coverage of the new Hawaiian law, see story, page one.)

Meanwhile, on the very last day of the Alabama legislative session, Gov. Don Siegelman signed what Mary Spaulding Balch, NRL director of state legislation, called ?Casey plus.?

?In the Casey decision, the Supreme Court gave its okay to what we call ?Woman?s Right to Know? legislation,? Balch said. Such laws include a 24-hour waiting period after a woman requests an abortion for her to consider the comparative risks of abortion and childbirth, along with alternatives, and, if she wishes, an explanation of her child?s development to that point.

?Alabama included an additional backup protection for women: the abortionist must have an ultrasound available if the mother wishes to see her unborn child,? Balch said.

And while pro-lifers in West Virginia and Iowa were unable to pass their Women?s Right to Know laws, they did make significant progress. For example, only a last-minute veto by Gov. Robert Wise could derail the West Virginia law, which passed both houses easily and enjoyed widespread popular and media support. Seventeen states now have passed such laws.