1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to health; providing for unborn child pain
1.3 	prevention; providing criminal penalties; proposing
1.4 	coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 145.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. SHORT TITLE.
 1.7 	This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Unborn
1.8 	Child Pain Prevention Act." 

1.9 	Sec. 2. [145.4232] UNBORN CHILD PAIN PREVENTION.
1.10 		Subdivision 1.Definitions. For purposes of this
1.11 	section, the terms used have the meanings given:
1.12 	(1) "abortion" means the use of any means to terminate the
1.13 	pregnancy of a female known to be pregnant with knowledge that
1.14 	the termination with those means will, with reasonable
1.15 	likelihood, cause the death of the unborn child;
1.16 	(2) "attempt to perform an abortion" means an act, or an
1.17 	omission of a statutorily required act, that, under the
1.18 	circumstances as the actor believes them to be, constitutes a
1.19 	substantial step in a course of conduct planned to culminate in
1.20 	the performance of an abortion in violation of this section;
1.21 	(3) "unborn child" means a member of the species Homo
1.22 	sapiens from fertilization until birth;
1.23 	(4) "medical emergency" means any condition that, on the
1.24 	basis of the physician's good faith clinical judgment, so
1.25 	complicates the medical condition of a pregnant female as to
2.1 	necessitate the immediate abortion of her pregnancy to avert her
2.2 	death or for which a delay will create serious risk of
2.3 	substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily
2.4 	function; and 
2.5 	(5) "physician" means a person licensed as a physician or
2.6 	osteopath under chapter 147.
2.7 		Subd. 2.Unborn child pain prevention. Except in the
2.8 	case of a medical emergency, before an abortion is performed on
2.9 	an unborn child who is 20 weeks gestational age or more, the
2.10 	physician performing the abortion or the physician's agent shall
2.11 	inform the female if an anesthetic or analgesic would eliminate
2.12 	or alleviate organic pain to the unborn child caused by the
2.13 	particular method of abortion to be employed and inform her of
2.14 	the particular medical risks associated with the particular
2.15 	anesthetic or analgesic.  With her consent, the physician shall
2.16 	administer such anesthetic or analgesic.
2.17 		Subd. 3.Criminal penalties. Any person who knowingly or
2.18 	recklessly performs or attempts to perform an abortion in
2.19 	violation of this section is guilty of a felony.  No penalty may
2.20 	be assessed against the female upon whom the abortion is
2.21 	performed or attempted to be performed.
2.22 		Subd. 4.Civil remedies. (a) Any person upon whom an
2.23 	abortion has been performed in violation of this section or the
2.24 	father or a grandparent of the unborn child who was the subject
2.25 	of such an abortion may maintain an action against the person
2.26 	who performed the abortion in knowing or reckless violation of
2.27 	this section for actual and punitive damages.  Any person upon
2.28 	whom an abortion has been attempted in violation of this section
2.29 	may maintain an action against the person who attempted to
2.30 	perform the abortion in knowing or reckless violation of this
2.31 	section for actual and punitive damages.
2.32 	(b) If judgment is rendered in favor of the plaintiff in
2.33 	any action described in this subdivision, the court shall render
2.34 	judgment for a reasonable attorney's fee in favor of the
2.35 	plaintiff against the defendant.  If judgment is rendered in
2.36 	favor of the defendant and the court finds that the plaintiff's
3.1 	suit was frivolous and brought in bad faith, the court shall
3.2 	render judgment for a reasonable attorney's fee in favor of the
3.3 	defendant against the plaintiff.
3.4 		Subd. 5.Protection of privacy. In every civil or
3.5 	criminal proceeding or action brought under this section, the
3.6 	court shall rule whether the anonymity of any female upon whom
3.7 	an abortion has been performed or attempted shall be preserved
3.8 	from public disclosure if she does not give her consent to such
3.9 	disclosure.  The court, upon motion or sua sponte, shall make
3.10 	such a ruling and, upon determining that her anonymity should be
3.11 	preserved, shall issue orders to the parties, witnesses, and
3.12 	counsel and shall direct the sealing of the record and exclusion
3.13 	of individuals from courtrooms or hearing rooms to the extent
3.14 	necessary to safeguard her identity from public disclosure.  The
3.15 	order shall be accompanied by specific written findings
3.16 	explaining why the anonymity of the female should be preserved
3.17 	from public disclosure, why the order is essential to that end,
3.18 	how the order is narrowly tailored to serve that interest, and
3.19 	why no reasonable, less restrictive alternative exists.  In the
3.20 	absence of written consent of the female upon whom an abortion
3.21 	has been performed or attempted, anyone, other than a public
3.22 	official, who brings an action under subdivision 4, paragraph
3.23 	(a), shall do so under a pseudonym.  This subdivision may not be
3.24 	construed to conceal the identity of the plaintiff or of
3.25 	witnesses from the defendant.
3.26 		Subd. 6.Severability. If any one or more provision,
3.27 	section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or word of this
3.28 	section or the application thereof to any person or circumstance
3.29 	is found to be unconstitutional, the same is hereby declared to
3.30 	be severable and the balance of this section shall remain
3.31 	effective notwithstanding such unconstitutionality.  The
3.32 	legislature hereby declares that it would have passed this
3.33 	section, and each provision, section, subsection, sentence,
3.34 	clause, phrase, or word thereof, irrespective of the fact that
3.35 	any one or more provision, section, subsection, sentence,
3.36 	clause, phrase, or word be declared unconstitutional.