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Abortion Laws It is important to understand the laws that deal with abortion in order to know what needs to be done. These laws can be divided between the national laws that deal with the entire United States and the state laws that apply only to Arkansas. National Laws The Supreme Court has been responsible for most of the nation’s laws dealing with abortion. Their interpretation of the U.S. Constitution is considered the supreme law of the land. In 1973, the court handed down the decision of Roe v. Wade, which is the cornerstone for all laws dealing with abortion. In this monumental case, the court decided by a vote of 7-2 that the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution grants citizens the right to privacy. This right incorporates the right of a woman to kill her baby through an abortion. The Fourteenth Amendment was in no way ratified in order to grant women the right to an abortion. The amendment was ratified in 1868 as part of the Reconstruction legislation following the Civil War. The amendment was intended to grant the basic rights of citizenship to the newly freed slaves, reapportion the Congressional districts due to the new group of voters, deny any ex-Confederate the power to hold public office, and declare the debt of the former Confederacy null. The first section of this, granting the ex-slaves citizenship, was used to justify abortion on demand in the United States. The dissenting opinion had the following comment on the majority’s justification: "The Court simply fashions and announces a new constitutional right for pregnant mothers and, with scarcely any reason or authority for its action, invents that right with sufficient substance to override most existing state abortion statutes." In other words, seven federal justices simply decided that they wanted to make abortion legal and then did it. The Supreme Court has ruled on many cases since 1973 dealing with abortion, particularly on state laws that limit (not ban) abortion. Although the court’s rulings have been mixed, they have become increasingly favorable to certain state laws limiting abortion since the appointments of the Reagan and Bush administrations. In 1992, an important case, Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey was ruled on by the court. This decision, on one hand, was a disappointment to the pro-life cause because many hoped that the conservative court would overturn Roe v. Wade. However, it reaffirmed the 1973 case. On the other hand, it upheld several Pennsylvania laws restricting abortion by requiring parental consent for minors seeking an abortion, abortionists to inform their patients of all the health risks, a 24 hour waiting period, and reporting specified information to the state. The court basically allowed any restriction that did not place an "undue burden" upon the mother. Casey also established a standard that states could proscribe (ban) abortions after "viability" has been reached. Viability is the point in which the baby can survive outside the mother’s womb. The court, however, set no standard as to when viability has been reached. Congress has dealt with abortion through much of its legislation, although its impact has not been as great as that of the Supreme Court. Congress has kept almost all federal funds from being used for abortions, through legislation such as the restriction of federal funds being used for abortions for military personal. (10 USC Sec. 1093) They have also recently prohibited advertisement for abortion being sent through the mail. (18 USC Sec. 1461) Over the past six years, pro-life legislation has been difficult to pass because most legislation gets killed by the Presidential veto and lacks the votes needed to override it. This was the case with the recent Partial-Birth Abortion Ban. The bill was vetoed, which was overridden in the House of Representatives but fell three votes short in the Senate. Other recent legislation has allowed fetal tissue to be used for medical research (42 USC Sec. 289g) and given "freedom of access" to abortion clinics which prevents protesters from blocking the entrances. (18 USC Sec. 248) State Laws Arkansas has several laws which deal with abortion. Some of the laws are still in the books but have been nullified by Supreme Court decisions. One of the first laws dealing with abortion was a law passed in 1969 making all abortions illegal. This law became unconstitutional after Roe v. Wade in 1973. Since that time, most of our state laws have attempted to establish restrictions on abortion based on what the Supreme Court will allow. Arkansas state laws include the following: • Public
funds may not be used for an abortion expect to save the life of
the mother. (Amendment 68 to the Arkansas Constitution) |
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