Condemnation of Barbaric Amendment to Execute Women Who Have Abortions

Condemnation of Barbaric Amendment to Execute Women Who Have Abortions I am writing to express my absolute horror and condemnation regarding the recently proposed amendment to HB 570/SB 738, which would have allowed the state of Tennessee to charge women who obtain abortions—and the doctors who help them—with capital murder, making them eligible for the death penalty. While this amendment has reportedly been withdrawn, the fact that it was introduced as a serious legislative proposal by a member of your body reveals a deeply disturbing reality: there are elected officials in Tennessee who believe that women should be executed for making deeply personal medical decisions. This is not pro-life. This is state-sanctioned murder. The amendment, proposed by Rep. Jody Barrett and supported by gubernatorial candidate Rep. Monty Fritts, explicitly classified harm to an unborn child as equal to assault on a person "born alive," removing legal protections for pregnant women currently in statute. It offered no exceptions for rape, incest, or the health of the mother. Its only exemptions were for spontaneous miscarriage or unintentional death during life-saving procedures for both mother and child. Let me be clear: this proposal is barbaric, unconstitutional, and a grotesque violation of human rights. It treats women as vessels rather than full citizens deserving of bodily autonomy, dignity, and equal protection under the law. I note that the bill's sponsor, Sen. Mark Pody, withdrew the legislation not because the amendment was morally indefensible, but because he lacked the votes to pass it. His silence on the substance of the amendment speaks volumes. The fact that the amendment was not immediately and universally condemned by every member of the Republican caucus shows just how normalized extremist, theocratic policies have become in our state government. If Tennessee Republicans truly valued life, they would be investing in prenatal care, expanding Medicaid, funding rural hospitals, reducing our nation-leading maternal mortality rate, and supporting families. Instead, this amendment reveals that the true goal is not protecting life, but controlling women through terror. I demand that you: 1. Publicly condemn this amendment and any similar future proposals as unconstitutional, immoral, and a betrayal of any genuine commitment to life. 2. Affirm that women are full persons under the law, entitled to make their own healthcare decisions without threat of execution. 3. Commit to opposing any legislation that seeks to punish, prosecute, or execute women for pregnancy outcomes. Tennesseans deserve leaders who trust women, protect, and govern with compassion—not those who seek to expand the death penalty to cover women exercising control over their own bodies.