He pointed to the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn a woman’s right to access an abortion, which led to a law in Texas that defines an unborn child as a living person from the moment of fertilization. Almost all abortions in the state will become illegal in the coming weeks after the US Supreme Court overturned a ruling in a 1973 case known as Roe v Wade. Five days after the ruling, Brandy Bottone was pulled over in a high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane. “I said, ‘Well, I’m not trying to throw a political mix here, but with everything going on, this counts as a baby,’” she said, pointing to her belly. Ms Bottone, who was eight months pregnant when she was stopped, plans to challenge the ticket in court next week. “I was driving to pick up my son,” she said. “I knew I couldn’t be a minute late, so I took the HOV lane.” Bottone said she is not pro or anti-abortion – but the law should be uniform. “If there’s a pro-women category, that’s my stance,” she said. “A law says this is a baby and now it’s telling me this baby poking at my ribs is not a baby,” the 32-year-old said. “Why shouldn’t all of this make sense?” Follow The Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker Dallas attorney Chad Ruback said her argument isn’t as far-fetched as one might think. “I find her argument creative, but I do not believe, based on the current course of the Texas Transportation Code, that her argument would likely succeed in an appellate court,” he told the Washington Post. “That being said, it is entirely possible that she could find a trial court judge who would reward her for her creativity.” A judge rejected a similar claim in 2006, saying the rules were designed to fill empty seats in a vehicle. Read more: Biden condemns court’s ‘extreme ideology and tragic mistake’ Republican state Rep. Brian Harrison said he plans to introduce legislation to clarify that unborn babies should be treated as passengers. “Unborn babies are people (which means they’re passengers too) and should be treated accordingly under Texas law,” he tweeted.
