Parental Consent

Delegate Lawrence A. LaMotte, D-Carroll, Baltimore, sheathed his legislative sword Thursday at a hearing on 12 abortion bills and attempted to appeal to his colleagues on another level -- that of a parent.LaMotte, a primary sponsor of two abortion-rights bills, argued against the inclusion of any clause requiring minors to notify parents before having an abortion, a focus of debate on the issue.In an emotional plea, he described his recent meeting with the parents of a young Indiana woman who died as a result of a "botched back-alley abortion" and questioned whether his own teen-age daughter would be too ashamed to approach her parents if caught in the same predicament.

House OKs parental consent for tattoos A proposal to require parental consent for tattoos and body piercings was unanimously approved yesterday by the House of Delegates, days after House Republicans tried and failed to amend the measure to address abortion rights as well. Last week, Del. Gail H. Bates, a Howard County Republican, tried to amend the bill on the chamber floor to have it require parental consent for "other invasive surgical procedures," language intended to refer to abortion.

Schools announce student information disclosure policy Information about past or present students in the Howard County public school system can be disclosed without parental consent if the data has been designated, "directory information." In accordance with state and federal law, the Howard County Board of Education has designated as "directory information" a student's home phone number; home address; date and place of birth; major field of study; participation in officially recognized activities and sports; the weight and height of members of school athletic teams; dates of attendance; degrees and awards received; the most recent educational institution attended; and similar information.

Gov. Martin O'Malley will push to allow the Department of Juvenile Services to share information about children in its care with other social agencies - something now prohibited by state law. The governor's bill, which he plans to announce today, would lift the parental consent requirement that hampers even simple communication. For example, when a youth is arrested, Juvenile Services workers cannot make a phone call to social services workers to see whether the child is in foster care.

WASHINGTON -- The statutory rape of her young daughter was horror enough for Joyce Farley. The botched secret abortion that followed only made it worse.Farley had known nothing of the rape or of her daughter's progressing pregnancy. One day in August 1995, her daughter, Crystal, was simply gone. The stepmother of Crystal's boyfriend had spirited the girl off from their home in Dushore, Pa., for an abortion in New York, beyond the reach of Pennsylvania's parental consent law. The girl returned that night, alone, bleeding and in pain, just days past her 13th birthday.

The Baltimore Health Department plans to begin offering the new Norplant birth control device to women as young as 16 by the end of the year, an assistant health commissioner said yesterday.Nira R. Bonner said the new procedure could be particularly beneficial to young, sexually active women who often do not bother to use other birth control methods.She noted that teen mothers produce 1 of every 4 of the city's 13,000 births annually."I think it is going to have a positive impact in reducing unwanted pregnancies," Ms. Bonner said.

Five hours of hearings on the abortion issue yesterday changed no minds. The subject is well known to all 188 members of the General Assembly. Every delegate and senator has taken a position. In 1991, unlike 1990, legislative leaders have made it clear the matter will be voted upon in both the House and the Senate.Pro-abortion advocates have the upper hand. A majority of lawmakers seems committed to giving women the same right to an abortion in the initial stages of pregnancy that the Supreme Court stipulated in its Roe vs. Wade decision.

WASHINGTON -- Senate Republicans pushed through legislation yesterday making it a federal crime to evade parental consent laws by taking minors across state lines for abortions. The 65-34 Senate vote - which came just a week after a bill on stem cell research divided several leading Republicans from their anti-abortion base - gave the party another plank for its "values" agenda. Building on parental consent requirements in many states, the vote marked another victory in the drive by abortion opponents to limit access to the procedure.

Tanning in artificial devices would be prohibited for minors in Maryland without parental consent under legislation that's headed toward final passage in the General Assembly. Over objections about government intrusion and teenagers being prevented from getting a golden bronze for prom, the state Senate narrowly approved the bill on a 24-22 vote yesterday. The House of Delegates previously passed the bill, and the final vote by the Senate is expected today. Gov. Martin O'Malley has not reviewed the proposal, spokesman Rick Abbruzzese said.

Here are the provisions of abortion laws in Maryland and surrounding states:DelawareDelaware follows the guidelines established by Roe v. Wade, allowing liberal access to abortions in the first six months of pregnancy. Lawmakers have not enacted any additional restrictions on access to abortion.The U.S. Supreme Court's decision yesterday "doesn't have any impact" on existing law but "may well renew debate" over proposals for new restrictions, said Attorney General Charles M. Oberly 3rd. For example, he cited a parental consent proposal that has so far failed to reach a vote in the legislature.