Current Status Introducing Body:Senate Bill Number:587 Primary Sponsor:Williams Committee Number:11 Type of Legislation:GB Subject:Abortion, provisions Residing Body:Senate Current Committee:Judiciary Computer Document Number:587 Introduced Date:19930323 Last History Body:Senate Last History Date:19930323 Last History Type:Introduced, read first time, referred to Committee Scope of Legislation:Statewide All Sponsors:Williams Jackson Glover Mescher Patterson Cork Land Ford Short Greg Smith McGill Rankin Washington Passailaigue Type of Legislation:General Bill
Bill Body Date Action Description CMN Leg Involved
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587 Senate 19930323 Introduced, read first time, 11
referred to Committee
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TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING CHAPTER 50 TO TITLE 44, SO AS TO PROHIBIT ANY PERSON FROM KNOWINGLY AND WILFULLY ENGAGING IN HARASSMENT INTENDED TO PREVENT OR DETER ANOTHER PERSON FROM, OR PUNISH HIM FOR, PROVIDING OR RECEIVING LAWFUL MEDICAL SERVICES; BY ADDING SECTION 16-5-135, SO AS TO PROHIBIT A PERSON FROM INTENTIONALLY PREVENTING AN INDIVIDUAL FROM ENTERING OR EXITING A MEDICAL FACILITY; BY ADDING SECTION 16-23-425, SO AS TO PROHIBIT A PERSON FROM CARRYING INTO A MEDICAL FACILITY A FIREARM OR OTHER WEAPON AND TO PROVIDE EXCEPTIONS TO THIS PROHIBITION; TO AMEND SECTION 16-3-1070(B), RELATING TO THE CRIME OF STALKING, SO AS TO PROHIBIT TWO OR MORE PERSONS ACTING IN CONCERT FROM ENGAGING IN THE CRIME OF STALKING; TO AMEND SECTION 16-5-10, RELATING TO CONSPIRACY AGAINST CIVIL RIGHTS, SO AS TO INCLUDE IN THE SECTION THE RIGHT TO PERFORM OR OBTAIN A LAWFUL ABORTION; TO AMEND SECTION 16-7-160, RELATING TO THE ILLEGAL USE OF STINK BOMBS OR OTHER DEVICES CONTAINING FOUL OR OFFENSIVE ODORS, SO AS TO PROHIBIT SIMILAR SUBSTANCES USED ILLEGALLY AND TO PROHIBIT THE USE OF SUCH SUBSTANCES AND DEVICES AT ANY MEDICAL FACILITY AS DEFINED IN SECTION 16-5-135; AND TO AMEND SECTION 44-41-60, RELATING TO THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION CONTAINED IN ABORTION REPORTS SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL, SO AS TO PROHIBIT THE DEPARTMENT FROM RELEASING TO MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC THE NAME OF THE REPORTING PHYSICIAN AND THE FACILITY IN WHICH THE ABORTION WAS PERFORMED.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. This act shall be known as the "Medical Access Protection Act."
SECTION 2. Title 44 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 44-50-10. (A) It is unlawful for a person, either alone or in concert with others, to knowingly and wilfully engage in a course of harassment directed at an individual or his family which is intended to prevent or deter the individual from, or punish him for, participating in the provision or receipt of lawful medical services or the lawful refusal of medical services. The course of harassment must be such as would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress or to fear for his physical well-being or that of his family, or such as would be likely to cause substantial harm to the personal or professional reputation of the targeted individual, and include acts such as the following:
(1) following the targeted individual or his family members;
(2) making oral or written accusations to the targeted individual's neighbors, family members, or other members of the public that the targeted individual is guilty of a criminal offense, unprofessional conduct, or professional negligence, if the person knows that the accusation is false or acts with reckless disregard of its truth or falsity, including accusing an individual of murder solely because of his participation in the provision of lawful abortions;
(3) inflicting damage on the automobile or other property of the targeted individual;
(4) placing photographs or other materials upon the targeted individual's property;
(5) shouting at the targeted individual or a member of his family in a way intended to frighten or offend;
(6) throwing objects at the targeted individual or a member of his family or a vehicle in which the targeted individual or a member of his family is a passenger;
(7) making repeated, threatening, profane, or intimidating telephone calls to the targeted individual or a member of his family, or telephone calls that are otherwise calculated to annoy or frighten the targeted individual or family member;
(8) picketing or conducting other forms of protest within one hundred feet of the targeted individual's residence or place of business other than the facility in which the medical procedures are performed; or
(9) threatening to commit a crime of violence against or to damage property of the targeted individual or his family members.
A person violating this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.
(B) An individual who is physically or emotionally injured by a violation of this section may recover actual and punitive damages, court costs, and attorney's fees in a civil action against the person or persons who committed the violation or against an organization that incited, encouraged, or assisted the person or persons in harassing the individual, or identified the individual as a target for harassment.
(C) The provisions of this section extend, but are not limited to a person who seeks or obtains medical services; a person who refuses to consent to medical services for himself or another; a physician or other health care professional; an employee, board member, or volunteer of a physician, other health care professional, or health care facility; an attorney for a physician, other health care professional, or health care facility; or any other person who has a relationship with a physician, other health care professional, or health care facility who is targeted for harassment because of such relationship. For purposes of this section, `medical services' include lawful abortion services.
(D) Nothing in this section shall be construed or applied to prohibit or penalize activities protected by the first amendment to the United States Constitution."
SECTION 3. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 16-5-135. (A) Any person who, either alone or in concert with others, intentionally prevents an individual from entering or exiting a medical facility by physically detaining the individual or by obstructing, impeding, or hindering the individual's passage is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned for not more than thirty days, or both. Any person who is convicted of a second or subsequent offense under this section must be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned for not more than ninety days, or both.
(B) For purposes of this section, `medical facility' means a health care facility as defined in Section 44-7-130 or any other facility or office where services of a licensed health care professional are provided directly to patients, and includes the parking lot or other area in which persons wishing to obtain services from the facility or office park their vehicles.
(C) This section does not apply to the acts of an officer, employee, or agent of the medical facility, or a law enforcement officer, acting in the course of his employment.
(D) Nothing in this section shall be construed or applied to prohibit or penalize activities protected by the first amendment to the United States Constitution."
SECTION 4. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 16-23-425. Any person who carries into a medical facility as defined in Section 16-5-135 or has in his possession in the area immediately adjacent to such facility, a firearm or other weapon as defined in Section 16-23-405, without the express permission of the authorities in charge of the facility, or who, upon entering such facility or the areas immediately adjacent thereto, displays, brandishes, or threatens others with a firearm is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined not more than five thousand dollars or be imprisoned not more than five years, or both, in the discretion of the court. Any firearm used in violation of this section may be confiscated by the law enforcement division making the arrest.
The provisions of this section do not apply to any guard or law enforcement officer whose presence with a weapon in or around a particular facility is authorized by persons legally responsible for the security of the facility. The provisions of this section do not apply if the weapon is located within a domicile or legally stored in an automobile or other vehicle."
SECTION 5. Section 16-3-1070(B) of the 1976 Code, as added by Act Number 417 of 1992, is amended to read:
"(B) It is unlawful for a person, or for two or more persons acting in concert, to wilfully, maliciously, and repeatedly follow or harass another person and make a credible threat with the intent to place that person in reasonable fear of death or great bodily injury. A person violating this section is guilty of the crime of stalking and, upon conviction, must be punished by imprisonment for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or both."
SECTION 6. Section 16-5-10 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 16-5-10. If any two or more persons shall band or conspire together or go in disguise upon the public highway or upon the premises of another with intent to injure, oppress, or violate the person or property of any citizen because of his political opinion or his expression or exercise of the same or shall attempt by any means, measures or acts to hinder, prevent, or obstruct any citizen in the free exercise and enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution and laws of the United States or by the Constitution and laws of this State, including the right to perform or obtain a lawful abortion, such persons shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, on upon conviction thereof, must be fined not less than one hundred nor more than two thousand dollars or be imprisoned not less than six months nor more than three years, or both, at the discretion of the court, and shall thereafter be ineligible to hold, and disabled from holding, any office of honor, trust, or profit in this State."
SECTION 7. Section 16-7-160 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 16-7-160. It is unlawful for any person, other than a peace officer engaged in the discharge of his duty, to place or throw a stink bomb, tear-gas bomb, smoke bomb, or similar substance or device which contains or causes foul or offensive odors, may inflict injury to person or property, disrupt lawful activities, or cause fear sufficient to incite a riot or conditions of panic in or in close proximity to any public building, medical facility as defined in Section 16-5-135, storehouse, theater, stadium, arena, motion picture theater, private residence, boardinghouse, or other building or other structure where people lodge, congregate, or reside. Any person violating the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be punished by imprisonment for not more than three years or by a fine of not more than three thousand dollars, or both; provided, where the violation causes serious bodily harm or injury, the punishment must be imprisonment for not more than ten years or a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars, or both. The court may order all or a portion of a fine to be paid to persons injured as a result of the violation to recover necessary medical expenses."
SECTION 8. Section 44-41-60 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 44-41-60. Any abortion performed in this State must be reported by the performing physician on the standard form for reporting abortions to the state registrar, Department of Health and Environmental Control, within seven days after the abortion is performed provided that the name of the patient may not be reported on the form or otherwise disclosed to the state registrar. The form must indicate from whom consent was obtained or circumstances waiving consent. The name of the reporting physician and the facility within which the abortion was performed shall be confidential and may not be revealed to members of the public by the Department of Health and Environmental Control."
SECTION 9. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.