Family Life

03.02.11 | Sarah Harnisch

  For the first time in legal U.S. history, an unborn child will be testifying in an Ohio abortion bill case before their House health committee. There is a unique bill in the works there that proposes outlawing abortions after the first heartbeat can be medically detected. Faith2Action, the pro-life group that has targeted Ohio to pilot the measure, called the in-utero witness the youngest to ever come before the House Health Committee, at just 9 weeks gestation. Faith2Action President Janet Folger Porter said the intent is to show lawmakers that a 9-week-old is not "tissue". An aide to committee Chairman Lynn Wachtmann said a pregnant woman will be brought before the committee and an ultrasound image of her uterus will be projected onto a screen. The heartbeat of the fetus will be visible in color. There's no word yet on what date the in-utero testimony will be given.