Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Tuesday signed a bill that bans nearly all abortions in the state. The only exceptions will be abortions that save the life or preserve the health of the mother or the baby.

Under the new law, performing or attempting to perform an abortion for any other reason will be a felony offense, punishable by a fine of up to $100,000, imprisonment up to 10 years, or both. The punishment applies only to the abortion practitioner, not to the mother of the unborn child.

Pro-abortion advocates have promised to challenge the law, something that pro-life supporters fully expected. Their hope is that the law, titled Senate Bill 6, will ultimately be considered by the conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court, and that the court might use that opportunity to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide.

“I will sign SB6 because of overwhelming legislative support and my sincere and long-held pro-life convictions,” Hutchinson said in a statement. “SB6 is in contradiction of binding precedents of the U.S. Supreme Court, but it is the intent of the legislation to set the stage for the Supreme Court overturning current case law.”

Several other states have also recently passed abortion bans in the hope that the Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade.

Republican state Rep. Mary Bentley, the bill’s lead sponsor in the Arkansas House, said: “Arkansas is the most pro-life state in the nation, and never have our constituents or Arkansans ever voted for abortion in Arkansas.”

Photo: Gov. Asa Hutchinson Flickr