Mister Chairman & members of the House Judiciary Committee. My name is Carol Sawicki and I am from Fargo. I am an employee of the Red River Women's Clinic, and I am here to speak in opposition to House Bill 1242.

You are already aware that this bill is unconstitutional and is in direct conflict with a Supreme Court ruling of 30 years standing. This bill would ban all abortions, even when the life or health of the mother was in jeopardy and in cases of rape and incest. It would make felons out of women who have thoughtfully made a very difficult decision at a time of crisis in their lives. This bill would also have the effect of outlawing several forms of contraception, including IUD's, the "morning after pill" and probably also the birth control pill.

The state of North Dakota cannot afford to waste valuable resources defending a law that is clearly unconstitutional and that the legislators know is unconstitutional. At a time like this, when resources are so tight, there are much better ways to use the taxpayer's dollars. In fact, some might say it would be irresponsible to waste the taxpayer's money this way.

As an employee of the Red River Women's Clinic, I personally am deeply troubled by a law that would label as criminals, people that I work with and know well. The doctors and employees at the Clinic are compassionate, caring and generous. We all do the work that we do, not for great financial gain, as is often assumed, but because we believe that every woman dealing with a problem pregnancy must have all possible options to choose from. We are glad that we are able use our training to make sure that abortion is one of the choices available to her.

I have brought along a lot of information and statistics. If any of you have questions about abortion or the Red River Women's Clinic, I would be glad to answer them.

Thank you very much for allowing me an opportunity to testify at this hearing.