Saying Nebraska is “a pro-life state,” Gov. Pete Ricketts Aug. 15 signed into law a ban on dismemberment abortions, which he said stops a “horrific procedure” and is “an important step to strengthen our culture of life... This brutal procedure has no place in a humane, civilized society,” The new law, passed by the state Legislature Aug. 13, bans a second-trimester abortion procedure that removes the fetus in pieces. With the ban in place, if this type of abortion is preformed, it will be a felony that comes with a punishment of up to two years in prison and/or a fine of $10,000.

Five years ago, it was former California attorney general Kamala Harris (now senator and VP candidate) who launched the investigation into the work of Sandra Merritt and David Daleiden, the founder of the Center for Medical Progress, after these citizen journalists discovered and produced videos documenting Planned Parenthood’s illegal trafficking of aborted baby body parts.

Scientists and bioethics experts who believe babies in the womb deserve basic human rights are leading a new advisory board investigating the use of aborted baby body parts in government-funded research.