NC bill would legalize killing those who seek an abortion. Really. | Opinion

May 29, 2026, 4:03 a.m. ET

Some Republican lawmakers in North Carolina are proving just how far they’re willing to go to control women’s bodies.

On May 13, state Reps. Keith Kidwell and Ben Moss filed a bill stating that life begins at "fertilization" – an extreme position, but not an uncommon one. Yet things took a turn when they described how they intended to protect the rights of the unborn.

“Any person who willfully seeks to destroy the life of another person, by any means, at any stage of life, or succeeds in doing so, shall be held accountable for attempted murder or for first degree murder, respectively,” the bill reads. “Any person has the right to defend his or her own life or the life of another person, even by the use of deadly force if necessary, from willful destruction by another person.”

Yes, you read that right. If this bill were to pass, those seeking an abortion in North Carolina could be charged with attempted murder for doing so, and anyone caught trying to obtain an abortion could be killed by someone who believes they are defending the life of another person.

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To be clear, the bill isn’t going to pass. It seeks to amend the state constitution, which would require a three-fifths majority in both chambers of the legislature. No other Republicans have added their name to the bill – Moss even took his name off the legislation on May 26, saying the bill’s language has “led to significant misunderstandings and differing misinterpretations.”

The bill was referred to the Rules Committee in the state House of Representatives, where it will likely stay until the end of the term.

It's clear what message Republicans want to send

Even so, the intent behind the bill is clear: Some of the most extreme members of the Republican Party believe that abortion is the exact same thing as taking the life of a fully formed human being, and should be punished as such.

The fact that it was introduced at all could have a chilling effect on those seeking abortions in the state – and would make other anti-abortion measures, like a shorter timeframe for receiving treatment, seem like a compromise.

North Carolina is one of the only states in the South where abortions are still fairly obtainable. Despite this, there are plenty of barriers to care – a 72-hour waiting period, only a handful of abortion clinics across the state and a ban on abortions after 12 weeks except in special circumstances.

Nationally, anti-abortion activists have gone after medication abortion at the Supreme Court in an attempt to stop abortions from happening across the country, not just in states with bans.

While the North Carolina public is almost evenly split on the 12-week ban, some overzealous Republicans would rather impose their will on the state's residents than allow things to continue operating as they are.

The abortion-as-murder argument may be hypothetical in North Carolina, but it is a reality in other states. In March, a Georgia woman was charged with murder for taking abortion pills after the state’s six-week cutoff. In 2022, a similar situation happened in Texas.

Kidwell clearly wants to emulate this chaos in North Carolina, despite the fact that it harms those who might need abortion care. That’s why this bill needs to be taken seriously, despite the fact that it will never see the light of day. While it’s easy to flippantly disregard the proposal as Republican extremism, this is really what some people on the right believe.

Republicans keep trying the same playbook

This isn’t the first time someone has tried to equate abortion with murder in the North Carolina legislature. Former Rep. Larry Pittman introduced a nearly identical proposal back in 2021, which went viral for the same reasons and also failed to go anywhere.

Yet these bills still impact those seeking abortions in the state, and reveal just how far some extremist Republicans are willing to go to defend their belief systems.

Republicans complain about extremism on the left, but they are silent when it comes from members of their own party. House Speaker Destin Hall has not weighed in on the bill, nor has Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger.

I understand that they don’t want to go against another member of their party, but it’s troubling that they’d rather stay silent than condemn a bill that so clearly harms the state. The GOP should be concerned that Kidwell is muddying the party’s messaging by introducing something so extreme.

Sure, the bill won't pass. But I’m concerned for my home state that it was even introduced in the first place. Some Republicans seem to have no issues putting women in harm's way. This bill shows extremists' true colors and makes life harder for those seeking abortion in the state.

Follow USA TODAY columnist Sara Pequeño on Bluesky: @sarapequeno.bsky.social