Dakotans for Health: Judge’s ruling another win for direct democracy and reproductive rights in South Dakota
In a significant victory for direct democracy and the protection of reproductive rights, Circuit Judge John Pekas has dismissed the lawsuit filed by the Life Defense Fund (LDF).
Rick Weiland, co-founder of Dakotans for Health, and sponsor of the Freedom Amendment (its petition drive, which successfully placed the abortion rights measure on this November’s ballot, is shown above in an image from the Dakotans For Health Facebook page), praised the decision.
“Judge Pekas’ ruling today is another win for direct democracy and letting the voters decide how much freedom they want when it comes to reproductive health care,” Weiland said. “This ruling underscores the importance of allowing voters, rather than politicians, to determine the extent of their reproductive health-care freedoms.
“They have thrown everything they could dream up to stop the people of South Dakota from voting on this matter. This is another failed effort by a small group opposed to giving women the option to terminate pregnancies caused by rape and incest or to address dangerous pregnancies affecting the life and health of women,” Weiland said.
Former state Sen. Nancy Turbak of Watertown, the chair of South Dakotans for Freedom Amendment G, echoed this sentiment: “With every day that goes by, more and more people are joining our Freedom Coalition because reproductive rights are not a partisan issue; they are an issue of personal freedom.”
Dakotans for Health began collecting signatures in November 2022 to restore the rights previously granted under the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade. Over the course of 18 months, petition circulators and registered voters faced harassment and intimidation from Life Defense Fund’s “Decline to Sign” protestors, whose goal was to disrupt the democratic petitioning process.
Additionally, state Rep. Jon Hansen, R-Dell Rapids, pushed through the Legislature a new law under an “emergency clause” that allowed people to withdraw their names after signing a petition. This action led to a complaint by the South Dakota Secretary of State’s Office, warning of a telephone scam orchestrated by Rep. Hansen and his newly formed group, South Dakotans for Petition Integrity, which produced ZERO valid withdrawal affidavits from the random sample.
“The decision by Minnehaha County Court Judge John Pekas to dismiss the LDH lawsuit put the decision on overturning South Dakota’s extreme abortion ban in the hands of the voters this November — which is where it should be,” Weiland said.
Dakotans for Health is a grassroots organization focused on health care and protecting the democratic process. The organization was instrumental in the successful 2022 campaign to expand Medicaid coverage to 52,000 low-income South Dakotans. Dakotans for Health is dedicated to ensuring all South Dakotans have access to the care they need, no matter who they are, what they look like, or how much money they have.
