II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 396 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit taking minors across 

State lines in circumvention of laws requiring the involvement of parents 

in abortion decisions. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 16, 2005 

Mr. ENSIGN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit taking 

minors across State lines in circumvention of laws requiring the involvement of parents in abortion decisions.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Child Custody Protec5 tion Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TRANSPORTATION OF MINORS IN CIRCUMVENTION 

7 OF CERTAIN LAWS RELATING TO ABORTION. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title 18, United States Code, is 

9 amended by inserting after chapter 117 the following:
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1 ‘‘CHAPTER 117A—TRANSPORTATION OF 

2 MINORS IN CIRCUMVENTION OF CER3 TAIN LAWS RELATING TO ABORTION

‘‘Sec 

‘‘2431. Transportation of minors in circumvention of certain laws relating to 

abortion

4 ‘‘§ 2431. Transportation of minors in circumvention of 

5 certain laws relating to abortion 

6 ‘‘(a) OFFENSE.— 

7 ‘‘(1) GENERALLY.—Except as provided in sub8 section (b), whoever knowingly transports a minor 

9 across a State line, with the intent that such minor 

10 obtain an abortion, and thereby in fact abridges the 

11 right of a parent under a law requiring parental in12 volvement in a minor’s abortion decision, in force in 

13 the State where the minor resides, shall be fined 

14 under this title or imprisoned not more than one 

15 year, or both. 

16 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of this 

17 subsection, an abridgement of the right of a parent 

18 occurs if an abortion is performed on the minor, in 

19 a State other than the State where the minor re20 sides, without the parental consent or notification, or 

21 the judicial authorization, that would have been re22 quired by that law had the abortion been performed 

23 in the State where the minor resides. 

24 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) The prohibition of subsection (a) does not 

2 apply if the abortion was necessary to save the life 

3 of the minor because her life was endangered by a 

4 physical disorder, physical injury, or physical illness, 

5 including a life endangering physical condition 

6 caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself. 

7 ‘‘(2) A minor transported in violation of this 

8 section, and any parent of that minor, may not be 

9 prosecuted or sued for a violation of this section, a 

10 conspiracy to violate this section, or an offense 

11 under section 2 or 3 based on a violation of this sec12 tion. 

13 ‘‘(c) AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE.—It is an affirmative 

14 defense to a prosecution for an offense, or to a civil action, 

15 based on a violation of this section that the defendant rea16 sonably believed, based on information the defendant ob17 tained directly from a parent of the minor or other compel18 ling facts, that before the minor obtained the abortion, the 

19 parental consent or notification, or judicial authorization 

20 took place that would have been required by the law re21 quiring parental involvement in a minor’s abortion deci22 sion, had the abortion been performed in the State where 

23 the minor resides. 
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1 ‘‘(d) CIVIL ACTION.—Any parent who suffers harm 

2 from a violation of subsection (a) may obtain appropriate 

3 relief in a civil action. 

4 ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this sec5 tion— 

6 ‘‘(1) a ‘law requiring parental involvement in a 

7 minor’s abortion decision’ means a law— 

8 ‘‘(A) requiring, before an abortion is per9 formed on a minor, either— 

10 ‘‘(i) the notification to, or consent of, 

11 a parent of that minor; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) proceedings in a State court; and 

13 ‘‘(B) that does not provide as an alter14 native to the requirements described in sub15 paragraph (A) notification to or consent of any 

16 person or entity who is not described in that 

17 subparagraph; 

18 ‘‘(2) the term ‘parent’ means— 

19 ‘‘(A) a parent or guardian; 

20 ‘‘(B) a legal custodian; or 

21 ‘‘(C) a person standing in loco parentis 

22 who has care and control of the minor, and 

23 with whom the minor regularly resides, who is 

24 designated by the law requiring parental in25 volvement in the minor’s abortion decision as a 
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1 person to whom notification, or from whom con2 sent, is required; 

3 ‘‘(3) the term ‘minor’ means an individual who 

4 is not older than the maximum age requiring paren5 tal notification or consent, or proceedings in a State 

6 court, under the law requiring parental involvement 

7 in a minor’s abortion decision; and 

8 ‘‘(4) the term ‘State’ includes the District of 

9 Columbia and any commonwealth, possession, or 

10 other territory of the United States.’’. 

11 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of chapters 

12 for part I of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 

13 inserting after the item relating to chapter 117 the fol14 lowing new item:

‘‘117A. Transportation of minors in circumvention of certain laws 

relating to abortion .......................................................................... 2431’’.

Æ