TRI In The News
Rally Urges Senate, Bolling, to Back 'Personhood' Bill
From The Richmond Times-Dispatch
Original article available here
On its first day in the Senate after it cleared the House Tuesday, pro-lifers rallied at the state Capitol to support House Bill 1, which would define life as beginning at conception.
Nearly 100 people gathered at Capitol Square's Bell Tower wearing yellow scarves and yellow balloons and carrying "Support HB1" posters with a fetus on them to advocate for the measure.
The bill would impart the rights of "personhood" to a human embryo at the moment of conception, creating a civil cause of action for the wrongful death of an unborn child killed by the negligent or criminal act of a third party.
The bill's patron, Del. Robert G. Marshall, R-Prince William, called on Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, who breaks ties in the evenly split Senate, to take a position on the measure.
"If it comes to a tie vote, lieutenant governor, we need to know how you're going to vote," he said.
Asked Tuesday if he had a position on the bill yet, Bolling replied: "I do not."
Marshall and the bill's architect, Rita Dunaway, an attorney with the Rutherford Institute, also called on Gov. Bob McDonnell to make his position clear.
"Governor McDonnell, please hear this: The pro-life movement is not some pack of dogs that will be thrown off the scent by specious concerns of constitutionality," Dunaway said. "Neither will we be content to be thrown a bone in the form of some alternate bill that does not accomplish our long-term objectives."
Opponents claim the legislation could be used to make abortion illegal or outlaw contraception that prevents the implantation of a fertilized egg.
Dunaway called that "fear-mongering," adding that "House Bill 1 will not end abortion in Virginia just as the Declaration of Independence with its noble recognition of inalienable rights does not end slavery."
She did say that the bill "lays a strong foundation for legally sustainable future pro-life efforts."
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli spoke at the event in support of the legislation, urging supporters to contact senators.
