The Carhart ruling possibly moved people to view a second and third trimester entity (as defined in Roe) as a human “infant life” (op, p. 29) worthy of protection.

(***Warning: the following quote may upset people immensely due to its graphic description of intact D&E.***)

“‘Dr. Haskell went in with forceps and grabbed the baby’s legs and pulled them down into the birth canal. Then he delivered the baby’s body and the arms—everything but the head. The doctor kept the head right inside the uterus. . . .”‘The baby’s little fingers were clasping and unclasping, and his little feet were kicking. Then the doctor stuck the scissors in the back of his head, and the baby’s arms jerked out, like a startle reaction, like a flinch, like a baby does when he thinks he is going to fall. “‘The doctor opened up the scissors, stuck a high-powered suction tube into the opening, and sucked the baby’s brains out. Now the baby went completely limp. . . . “‘He cut the umbilical cord and delivered the placenta. He threw the baby in a pan, along with the placenta and the instruments he had just used.'” (op, p. 8)

In the above testimony regarding a pre-birthed SHL, the importance of the “location” prong of the SLED defense comes to the forefront of the abortion debate. Banning intact D&E only keeps the SHL from being killed outside the womb. The question regarding the difference about killing the SHL outside the womb with intact D&E and inside the womb with standard D&E at the same level of development (the D prong of the SLED defense) may be more frequently asked. The “baby’s little fingers [will still be] clasping and unclasping, and his little feet [will still be] kicking” until the “baby” is aborted.