{"data":{"id":"us-mt/50-20-401","jurisdiction":"us-mt","citation":"50-20-401","heading":"Offense of partial-birth abortion -- exception -- definitions -- penalties.","body":"(1) Except as provided in this section, a person commits an offense if the person purposely, knowingly, or negligently causes a partial-birth abortion.\n(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to:\n(a) a partial-birth abortion caused to save the life of a woman because the woman's life is endangered by a physical disorder, illness, or injury, including a life-endangering condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself, if no other medical procedure would save the life of the woman; or\n(b) the woman upon whom a partial-birth abortion is performed.\n(3) As used in this section, the following definitions apply:\n(a) \"Knowingly\" has the meaning provided in 45-2-101.\n(b) \"Negligently\" has the meaning provided in 45-2-101.\n(c) (i) \"Partial-birth abortion\" means an abortion in which the person performing the abortion partially vaginally delivers a living human fetus before killing the fetus and completing the delivery.\n(ii) A procedure that constitutes a partial-birth abortion is one in which the following steps occur:\n(A) the living fetus is removed intact from the uterus until only the head remains in the uterus;\n(B) all or a part of the intracranial contents of the fetus are evacuated;\n(C) the head of the fetus is compressed; and\n(D) following fetal demise, the fetus is removed from the birth canal.\n(d) \"Purposely\" has the meaning provided in 45-2-101.\n(4) A person committing the offense provided for in subsection (1) is guilty of a felony and shall be punished by:\n(a) a fine of not more than $50,000;\n(b) imprisonment in a correctional facility for a term of not less than 5 years and not more than 10 years; or\n(c) both fine and imprisonment as provided in subsections (4)(a) and (4)(b); and\n(d) permanent revocation of the license of the physician performing the partial-birth abortion. The provisions of 37-1-203 and 37-1-205 do not apply to a physician whose license is revoked pursuant to this section.","path":["TITLE 50. HEALTH AND SAFETY","CHAPTER 20. ABORTION","Part 4. Miscellaneous Abortion Laws"],"source_url":"https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0500/chapter_0200/part_0040/section_0010/0500-0200-0040-0010.html","current_through":"Montana Code Annotated 2025","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T04:56:20Z","sha256":"9a5d6a7659c247e173e5e89b1ef12b0f0cb95c185038e301093c9664e6bc94af","source_id":"us-mt","stale":false,"prev":"us-mt/50-20-308","next":"us-mt/50-20-501"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}