The Arizona Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that a 19th-century abortion ban with almost no exceptions can be enforced in the state, dealing a devastating blow to patients who may be forced to self-manage their abortions at home, leave the state to get care, or continue a pregnancy against their will. In a 4-2 decision, the court’s conservative majority said that the state’s currently enforced 15-week abortion ban, which was passed shortly before the overturn of Roe v. Wade, depended on the continued existence of a national right to abortion. In the wake of the Dobbs decision, the justices said, that measure can’t overrule the 160-year-old law.
The ban was originally enacted in 1864 — before Arizona was a territory and decades before women were allowed to vote — and makes it a felony to perform or help someone obtain an abortion with a penalty of two to five years in prison. It includes just one exception: to save the life of the pregnant person. In practice, there’s overwhelming evidence that these exceptions are rarely granted to patients.
While the near-total ban will take effect in 14 days, it is unclear how it will be enforced. Democratic governor Katie Hobbs, who ran for office vowing to protect abortion rights, issued an executive order last summer, saying only the state attorney general’s office has authority to prosecute abortion-law violations. In a statement, Arizona attorney general Kris Mayes, also a Democrat, said the ruling was “unconscionable” and “a stain on our state.” She had previously said she won’t prosecute doctors who perform abortions. Whether Hobbs’s executive order can stand up in court remains to be seen; 12 out of the state’s 15 county attorneys previously threatened to sue the governor so that they can prosecute abortion cases.
In a statement, Planned Parenthood Arizona said it’d continue offering abortions up until 15 weeks for a limited period of time. The organization pointed at a separate case in which a lower court barred enforcement of the 1864 law for 45 days following a previous state Supreme Court ruling. “I took an oath as a physician to provide nonjudgmental, safe, compassionate, and evidence-based care for my patients,” said Dr. Jill Gibson, the organization’s chief medical officer. “And to soon not be able to provide my patients with that care is completely unacceptable and antithetical to my medical obligations and unfair and unjust to our community.”
Looming in the background of Tuesday’s decision is a ballot initiative that will give Arizonans the chance to codify abortion rights in the state constitution come November. The Arizona Right to Abortion Initiative would allow for abortion care up to 24 weeks of gestation, with exceptions for cases where the pregnant person’s life, physical health, and mental health are at risk. The state requires that organizers collect 383,923 verified voter signatures by early July in order for the amendment to appear on the ballot; last week, Arizona for Abortion Access, the coalition of reproductive-rights organizations behind the campaign, announced that it had collected nearly 507,000 signatures so far and plans to obtain at least 750,000 — more than enough to get in front of voters in the fall.
The Cut offers an online tool that allows you to search by Zip Code for professional providers, including clinics, hospitals, and independent OB/GYNs, as well as abortion funds, transportation options, and information for remote resources like receiving the abortion pill by mail. For legal guidance, contact Repro Legal Helpline at 844-868-2812 or The Abortion Defense Network.
By Andrea González-Ramírez , 2024-04-09 20:01:10
Source link
