TOLEDO, Ohio — City leaders are speaking out about the legal changes in Ohio regarding abortions following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Two Toledo City Council members and Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz posted on social media that they are working on ways to make sure people still have access to the medical resources they need.
Council members Nick Komives and Michele Grim said the first thing they are looking to do is decriminalize abortion in Toledo.
They say they don't want police or programs going after the people who get an abortion or the medical providers who perform them.
"Toledo has long been a place, a safe haven, for people to receive abortion care," Komives said.
Some members of city council want to make sure these procedures are still accessible.
They said the abortion bans are not doing what's best for people, it's just controlling them.
"I think it's devastating and egregious, to go after women who may not even know that they're pregnant yet because they want to get an abortion and have that reproductive choice," Grim said.
There's nothing council can do to change Ohio's laws regarding abortion, but council can introduce ordinances to make sure people have access to safe and legal abortions.
And they said the first step is decriminalizing it.
"We are seeking to make it a very low-level crime to make sure it's not prioritized," Komives said. "We don't want to spend money and time going after these individuals who are undergoing a health procedure that is intimate and personal to them and it's none of our business."
But working to decriminalize abortion is just the start; Grim and Komives want to find other avenues to help those who need access to reproductive health care.
Especially with Ohio's abortion laws that don't give exceptions to people who are victims of rape or incest.
"Right now, there are people in jeopardy of getting raped or are a victim of incest who need an abortion and may not be able to get that because it's after six weeks," Grim said.
WTOL 11 also reached out to councilman George Sarantou, the only Republican member on council, about his thoughts. As of this writing, we have not heard back.
Grim and Komives look to introduce something at their next council meeting in July.
They also want people to know the Toledo Women's Center is still open and that abortion is still legal in Ohio, as long as the pregnancy is less than six weeks along.