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Louisiana moves to make abortion pills a controlled substance

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Louisiana moves to make abortion pills a controlled substance


Outlawing abortion is only a first step for some conservative lawmakers, who keep dreaming up increasingly invasive schemes to ferret out and punish anyone trying to circumvent these bans. The latest example of this comes from Louisiana, where House lawmakers voted this week to make the abortion-inducing drugs mifepristone and misoprostol Schedule IV controlled substances.

That would make possession of these drugs a crime—punishable by a mandatory minimum prison sentence of one year and up to five years incarceration and a fine of $5,000—unless they were “obtained directly or pursuant to a valid prescription” for something other than abortion.

The alleged rationale for this bill is especially insane. State Sen. Thomas Pressly (R–Shreveport) brought in his sister, Catherine Pressly Herring, to testify about how her husband secretly slipped her abortion drugs when she was pregnant. “I share my story because no one should have abortion pills weaponized against them,” Herring said at an April hearing.

But administering abortion pills is already illegal in Louisiana, where abortion is banned with few exceptions. The state wouldn’t need a new law designating them a controlled substance in order to punish her husband’s alleged deception.

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There are also ways authorities could write a law to more narrowly target such behavior—which is in fact what Sen. Pressley is trying to do with Senate Bill (SB) 276, the larger bill to which the controlled substance change is attached. SB 276 “creates the crime of coerced criminal abortion by means of fraud to prohibit a third-party from knowingly using an abortion-inducing drug to cause, or attempt to cause, an abortion on an unsuspecting pregnant mother without her knowledge or consent,” per the state legislature’s website.

The True Target: Doctors and Pharmacists?

With or without this new crime, there is no reason the state needs to make abortion pills a Schedule IV controlled substance in order to target someone who secretly slips them into his pregnant wife’s drink. But this is a common tactic used by lawmakers trying to grant the state new power: using an extreme and sympathetic example of wrongdoing to justify a wide-reaching change that will be used in matters way beyond that example.

In this case, the most likely target is doctors who prescribe mifepristone and misoprostol.

Both drugs have multiple uses beyond inducing abortions. In fact, misoprostol originally gained traction as an anti-ulcer drug. It also has a number of obstetric uses, including inducing labor and treatment after a miscarriage. And Mifepristone is prescribed to people with Cushing syndrome and uterine leiomyomas.

Prescribing mifepristone or misoprostol for non-abortion reasons is still legal in Louisiana and other states where abortion is banned. But abortion foes worry some medical professionals may use this to covertly prescribe it for abortions.

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If these drugs are controlled substances, doctors will have to have a special Drug Enforcement Administration license to prescribe them and the state will be able to track when they’re prescribed, to whom, and at what pharmacy these prescriptions are filled.

Effect on Health Care

“Louisiana law typically categorizes medications, such as opioids, as Category IV drugs because they are addictive and thus have a high potential for abuse,” notes University of California, Davis School of Law professor Mary Ziegler at MSNBC:

To prescribe such drugs, physicians in the state need a special license, and the state tracks the patient, physician and pharmacy involved in each prescription. Therein lies one of the primary functions of the law: The state has had a hard time enforcing its abortion ban in part because it is hard to identify when and how pills change hands. At least when a prescription originates in state, this bill might give Louisiana prosecutors an extra edge in identifying people to prosecute.

The bill explicitly exempts pregnant women who have misoprostol or mifepristone for their own use from prosecution—another example of the weird paternalism involved in anti-abortion laws. I’m certainly glad most states don’t want to criminalize women for attempting or having abortions, but it’s also somewhat crazy to act like the woman here is not culpable for her actions but someone who helped her get abortion pills is.

While the law might not result in sending women to prison over abortion drugs, it could be bad for the health of women with miscarriages and other obstetric issues for which misoprostol and mifepristone are prescribed, as well as for people with ulcers and Cushing’s disease.

Doctors are likely to be leery of prescribing these medications for people who need them, much in the same way that crackdowns on pain pills and ADHD medications have harmed people who legitimately need these medicines for health conditions.

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What’s Next 

The bill seems likely to pass.

Louisiana’s Senate passed SB 276 without the controlled substances amendment by a unanimous vote back in April.

It defines the crime of coerced abortion by means of fraud as “a person knowingly and intentionally engages in the use or attempted use of an abortion-inducing drug on a pregnant woman, without her knowledge or consent, to cause an abortion,” and prescribed a punishment of five to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $75,000 if the woman was less than three months pregnant and 10 to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $100,000 if the pregnancy was further along than three months.

It also amends the state’s prohibition on “criminal abortion by means of abortion-inducing drugs” to include not just causing an abortion by “delivering, dispensing, distributing, or providing a pregnant woman with an abortion-inducing drug” but also with attempting to cause an abortion by these means.

SB 276 passed the House, with the amendment, on Tuesday, by a vote of 64-29. This version contains an amendment declaring “any material, compound, mixture, or preparation containing any detectable quantity of mifepristone or misoprostol” to be a Schedule IV controlled substance in Louisiana.

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The measure now goes back to the Senate for another vote.

More Sex & Tech News

• Florida is micromanaging what massage therapists can wear in the name of “cracking down on human trafficking.” Under a new law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis last week, their clothing must be “fully opaque and made of non-translucent material.” The law also stipulates that window coverings at massage businesses must allow in 35 percent of light. This is the kind of law that will do naught for “human trafficking” or labor exploitation, of course. But it does give authorities more pretense to investigate, sanction, and shut down massage businesses of the sort disfavored in many communities.

• The Woodhull Foundation and the Electronic Frontier Foundation are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to find Texas’ age-verification mandate (part of H.B. 1181) unconstitutional.

• California is the latest state to advance an age verification measure.

• Washington and Silicon Valley are gearing up for a war over AI.

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Today’s Image

Patio Jesus | Bushwick, 2013 (ENB/Reason)

 

 



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Pervy mayor’s kids told cops that they caught her romping with teen boy at boozy pool party

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Pervy mayor’s kids told cops that they caught her romping with teen boy at boozy pool party


The children of a disgraced Louisiana mayor told cops that they both caught their mom fooling around with a 16-year-old boy at a boozy pool party, according to video played at her rape trial.

Misty Roberts, the 43-year-old former head of DeRidder, Louisiana — population 9,8000 — faces a charge of third-degree rape over the 2024 incident.

Roberts’ son told investigators in an interview played for jurors that he saw his mom having sex with his pal through a crack in a window.

Misty Roberts is accused of having sex with a 16-year-old boy in 2024.

But, when asked about his recollection, he demurred — telling the court he wasn’t exactly sure what he saw that night, according to KPLC.

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The jury also reviewed pictures from the party, which showed kids holding drinks as well as a photograph of Roberts and the victim that prosecutors described as “lewd.”

That picture showed Roberts at the party in her bikini, with the teen victim looking up at her smiling.

Roberts’ son texted his mom that night, incredulous about what was happening, and told her that his sister was crying, according to messages presented by prosecutors.

“He is seventeen,” the son texted Roberts.

The boy was later confirmed to be 16 years old, according to KPLC.

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Roberts’ daughter also took the stand while prosecutors played her interview with detectives, in which she said she saw her mom and the boy “on top of each other” that night.

The former mayor’s nephew also admitted he tried to sneak a peek — using his phone to try and get a peek at what was going on in the room. He testified that he wasn’t sure if he hit “record” — but if he did said he never sent it to anybody.


Roberts was in her second term as mayor when she resigned.
Roberts was in her second term as mayor when she resigned. 7 KPLC

None of the three witnesses who testified said they saw the “private parts” of Roberts and the victim. The teen boy, they noted though, was shirtless.

After the alleged tryst, the victim’s mother texted Roberts to ensure that she was not pregnant, to which she replied she was on birth control. Roberts shared a screenshot of that message to a group chat with her friends, who urged her to take Plan B.

A DoorDash driver testified that he delivered an emergency contraceptive to Roberts’ house, which he recognized from trick-or-treating with his children there.

In other texts shown in court, Roberts asked her son what kind of alcohol her son and other kids wanted for the party.

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Days after police launched their investigation into the alleged crime, Roberts resigned as mayor of DeRidder, a city of just under 10,000 people about 20 miles east of the Texas border.

Roberts was charged with third-degree rape and contributing to the delinquency of juveniles.



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Louisiana Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for Feb. 28, 2026

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The Louisiana Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at Feb. 28, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from Feb. 28 drawing

06-20-35-54-65, Powerball: 10, Power Play: 4

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

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Winning Pick 3 numbers from Feb. 28 drawing

8-3-8

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from Feb. 28 drawing

5-4-7-5

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 5 numbers from Feb. 28 drawing

9-9-1-3-0

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Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Easy 5 numbers from Feb. 28 drawing

04-17-21-27-33

Check Easy 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lotto numbers from Feb. 28 drawing

08-10-15-21-22-33

Check Lotto payouts and previous drawings here.

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Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

All Louisiana Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $600. For prizes over $600, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at Louisiana Lottery offices. Prizes of over $5,000 must be claimed at Lottery office.

By mail, follow these instructions:

  1. Sign and complete the information on the back of your winning ticket, ensuring all barcodes are clearly visible (remove all scratch-off material from scratch-off tickets).
  2. Photocopy the front and back of the ticket (except for Powerball and Mega Millions tickets, as photocopies are not accepted for these games).
  3. Complete the Louisiana Lottery Prize Claim Form, including your telephone number and mailing address for prize check processing.
  4. Photocopy your valid driver’s license or current picture identification.

Mail all of the above in a single envelope to:

Louisiana Lottery Headquarters

555 Laurel Street

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Baton Rouge, LA 70801

To submit in person, visit Louisiana Lottery headquarters:

555 Laurel Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70801, (225) 297-2000.

Hours: 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.

Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Louisiana Lottery.

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When are the Louisiana Lottery drawings held?

  • Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
  • Pick 3, Pick 4 and Pick 5: Daily at 9:59 p.m. CT.
  • Easy 5: 9:59 p.m. CT Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Lotto: 9:59 p.m. CT Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Louisiana editor. You can send feedback using this form.



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Schumer demands congressional brief on Iran; Louisiana delegation weighs in on attack

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Schumer demands congressional brief on Iran; Louisiana delegation weighs in on attack


NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) demanded a congressional briefing from President Trump’s administration Saturday (Feb. 28), hours after the U.S. military joined Israel in launching airstrikes against Iran.

“When I talked to Secretary (of State Marco) Rubio, I implored him to be straight with Congress and the American people about the objectives of these strikes and what comes next,” Schumer said in a statement. “Iran must never be allowed to attain a nuclear weapon, but the American people do not want another endless and costly war in the Middle East when there are so many problems at home.

“The administration has not provided Congress and the American people with critical details about the scope and immediacy of the threat. Confronting Iran’s malign regional activities, nuclear ambitions and harsh oppression of the Iranian people demands American strength, resolve, regional coordination and strategic clarity. Unfortunately, President Trump’s fitful cycles of lashing out and risking wider conflict are not a viable strategy.

“The administration must brief Congress — including an immediate all-senators classified briefing — and in public testimony to answer these vital questions. The Senate should quickly return to session and reassert its constitutional duty by passing our resolution to enforce the War Powers Act. My prayers are with our brave American servicemembers.”

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Meanwhile, reaction to the attack from Louisiana’s congressional delegation appeared to break predictably among party lines.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) posted to X that the attack “is yet another move by President Trump to protect the United States and sends a message to the world: Never doubt America’s resolve or capacity to defend its interests.”

Rep. Troy Carter (D-La.) of New Orleans, however, said he was “deeply concerned” about the attack and said, “The American people deserve to understand the objectives, the risks and the path forward.”

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Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) wrote, “The President’s decision to attack Iran presumably was based upon a clear and present danger to the United States, and a planned execution that does not put the United States in a forever war.”

Rep. Julia Letlow (R-La.), who is mounting a primary challenge for Cassidy’s U.S. Senate seat, also endorsed Trump’s decision to attack Tehran.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) also backed Trump’s military action, writing that Iran was “facing the severe consequences of its evil actions.”

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Democratic Rep. Cleo Field expressed reservations that Trump had not made a case for the attack to Congress or the American people.

Republican Sen. John Kennedy had not yet posted reactions to the Iran attack — dubbed by the Pentagon as “Operation Epic Fury” — on social media or sent statements to the news media.

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