Bill that would expand abortion pill restrictions gets OK in Texas House | KENS5

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By: Maria Mendez, Colleen Deguzman, Terri Langford

The Texas Alliance for Life earlier this week expressed support for revisions to HB 7, including those meant to protect women’s privacy and cap financial rewards for people who are not related to the person who had or sought an abortion.

“It is already illegal to traffic abortion drugs in Texas under the Human Life Protection Act, and our priority remains enforcement of that and other laws,” said Amy O’Donnell, communications director for Texas Alliance for Life. “The revised version of HB 7 provides another tool against illegal abortion-by-mail while including vital protections for women.”

Texas Lawmakers Back Citizen Lawsuits to Stop Mail-Order Abortion Pills | New York Times

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By: J. David Goodman

The bill initially divided anti-abortion activists. Some were concerned that it would invite “bounty hunters” to file suits aimed at “profiting from the death of an unborn child to whom they are entirely unconnected,” said Joe Pojman, the executive director of the Texas Alliance for Life, in testimony at a House hearing on Friday.

But Mr. Pojman’s group backed the final House version of the legislation after new language was inserted saying that unrelated plaintiffs would only be able to keep $10,000 — with the remaining $90,000 going to a charity of the plaintiff’s choice, as long as the person filing the lawsuit did not have a direct connection or a financial stake in it. The revised bill also does not allow suits to be brought by domestic abusers or by men who committed sexual assault resulting in a pregnancy.

“We are united,” Amy O’Donnell, a spokeswoman for Texas Alliance for Life, said of the anti-abortion advocacy groups.

Texas Republicans renew push to crack down on abortion pills in special session | Fort Worth Star-Telegram

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By: Bayliss Wagner, Taylor Goldenstein

Meanwhile, another influential anti-abortion group in the state says Texas already has strong anti-abortion laws, so any efforts to enhance enforcement should be weighed carefully. Amy O’Donnell, communications director and incoming acting executive director of Texas Alliance for Life, expressed concern that bad actors could seek to file lawsuits for “personal gain.”

“We support enhancing enforcement against illegal distributors and traffickers of chemical abortion drugs,” O’Donnell said. “With that in mind, new legislation should always focus on protecting unborn children and protecting potential harm to women from abusive partners and breaches of privacy for personal gain by non-injured parties.”

Texas’s new ‘bounty hunter’ bill gets blessing from key anti-abortion groups | Houston Chronicle

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By: Taylor Goldenstein

Joe Pojman, the outgoing executive director of Texas Alliance for Life, had testified Friday that the previous version of the bill is “likely unconstitutional, ineffective, and will damage the pro-life reputation of this state.”

“Do we want bounty hunters from anywhere in the country or beyond filing lawsuits in our state, seeking judgments of $100,000 or more? Vigilantes profiting from the death of an unborn child to whom they are entirely unconnected?” Pojman said. “Members, this, in our view, is not a pro-life policy.”

But the group’s spokesperson, Amy O’Donnell, said on Monday that its legal counsel believes the updated version is “constitutionally sound” because it not only shields pregnant women from the lawsuits but also allows them to be plaintiffs.

For most Texans, abortion access unchanged after legislative session | The Dallas Morning News

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By: Emily Brindley

With a year and a half until the next legislative session, there are also non-legislative campaigns that could move the needle on Texans’ abortion access.

Joe Pojman, executive director of Texas Alliance for Life, said his focus for now is on the enforcement of Texas’ existing law. Pojman said he’ll be watching for the implementation of continuing education training under the abortion clarification bill. He also wants to see district attorneys take more enforcement action against doctors and others who provide abortion care or access.

Pojman, like Seago, is opposed to medication abortion. But he thinks the solution is the enforcement of existing law rather than additional legislation.

“We do have a problem with drugs being brought illegally into Texas for chemical abortions,” Pojman said. “I’d like to see more aggressive activity by district attorneys to prosecute those crimes.”

The anti-abortion movement is about to win. Even it isn’t ready for what comes next. | Vox

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By: https://www.vox.com/authors/anna-north

For now, mainstream anti-abortion groups say they remain committed to punishing providers, not patients. “We firmly believe that women should not be prosecuted for abortion, whether self-managed or through an abortion provider,” said Amy O’Donnell, director of communications for the group Texas Alliance for Life.

But Republican state lawmakers, some backed by more radical abortion opponents, are beginning to break with this ideology. Earlier this year, for example, Louisiana state Rep. Danny McCormick (R) introduced a bill that would allow people who get abortions to be charged with homicide, an offense punishable by life in prison without parole.