Wisconsin Supreme Court to consider whether 175-year-old law bans abortion (2024)

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Supreme Court decided Tuesday to consider two challenges to a 175-year-old law that conservatives maintain bans abortion without letting the cases wind through lower courts.

Abortion advocates stand an excellent chance of prevailing in both cases given the high court’s liberal tilt and remarks a liberal justice made on the campaign trail about how she supports abortion rights.

Wisconsin lawmakers enacted statutes in 1849 that had been widely interpreted as outlawing abortion in all cases except to save the mother’s life. The U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling legalizing abortion nullified the statutes, but legislators never repealed them. The high court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade reactivated them.

Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul filed a lawsuit challenging the statutes in 2022, arguing they were too old to enforce and a 1985 law that permits abortions before a fetus can survive outside the womb supersedes them. A Dane County judge ruled last year that the statutes outlaw attacking a woman in an attempt to kill her unborn baby but doesn’t ban abortions. The decision emboldened Planned Parenthood to resume offering abortions in Wisconsin after halting procedures when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Sheboygan County District Attorney Joel Urmanski, a Republican, asked the state Supreme Court in February to overturn the ruling without letting an appeal move through the state’s lower appellate courts. He argued the ruling will have a statewide impact and guide lawmakers and the case will ultimately end at the Supreme Court anyway.

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Days after Urmanski filed his request, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin sued Urmanski and asked the Supreme Court to take it directly. The organization is seeking a ruling that the 1849 statutes are unconstitutional, arguing that the state constitution’s declaration that people have a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness means women have a right to control their own bodies — essentially asking the court to declare a constitutional right to abortion.

The court released orders indicating the justices voted unanimously to take Urmanski’s appeal and voted 4-3 to take the Planned Parenthood case. The court’s four liberal justices voted to take that case, and the three conservative justices voted against taking it.

Urmanski’s attorneys, Andrew Phillips and Matthew Thome, didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Persuading the court’s liberal majority to uphold the statutes looks next to impossible. Liberal Justice Janet Protasiewicz even went so far as stating openly during her campaign that she supports abortion rights, a major departure for a judicial candidate. Typically such candidates refrain from speaking about their personal views out of concerns they could appear biased on the bench.

The conservative justices accused the liberal majority in their Planned Parenthood dissents of playing politics.

“The signal to a watching public is that, when certain policy issues touch the right nerve, this court will follow the party line, not the law,” Hagedorn wrote.

Liberal Justice Jill Karofsky countered in a concurrence that the state Supreme Court is supposed to decide important state constitutional questions.

“Regardless of one’s views on the morality, legality, or constitutionality of abortion, it is undeniable that abortion regulation is an issue with immense personal and practical significance to many Wisconsinites,” Karofsky wrote.

Michelle Velasquez, chief strategy officer for Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, said in a statement that the organization was grateful the court agreed to take its case and Wisconsin residents need to know whether abortion is legal in the state.

Wisconsin Watch, a media outlet, obtained a leaked draft of the order accepting the case last week, prompting Chief Justice Annette Ziegler to call for an investigation.

Anti-abortion groups decried the Supreme Court’s decision to take the Planned Parenthood case.

“Every Wisconsinite should be troubled by this blatant weaponization of the court system to enshrine death on demand,” Heather Weininger, executive director of Wisconsin Right to Life, said in a statement.

___

This story has been updated to correct the day of week in the first sentence to Tuesday, not Monday.

Wisconsin Supreme Court to consider whether 175-year-old law bans abortion (2024)

FAQs

Wisconsin Supreme Court to consider whether 175-year-old law bans abortion? ›

Wisconsin Supreme Court to consider whether 175-year-old law bans abortion. MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Supreme Court decided Tuesday to consider two challenges to a 175-year-old law that conservatives maintain bans abortion without letting the cases wind through lower courts.

When was Roe v. Wade established? ›

Recent News. Roe v. Wade, legal case in which the U.S. Supreme Court on January 22, 1973, ruled (7–2) that unduly restrictive state regulation of abortion is unconstitutional. In a majority opinion written by Justice Harry A.

What was the landmark case in 1973? ›

A Landmark Ruling …

On January 22, 1973, Roe — aka Norma McCorvey — won. Seven of the nine Supreme Court justices agreed that the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment protected the right of an individual to choose to end their pregnancy prior to viability.

What was the defendant's argument in Roe v. Wade? ›

Jane Roe and the others involved based their case on the following arguments: The Texas law invaded an individual's right to "liberty" under the 14th Amendment. The Texas law infringed on rights to marital, familial, and sexual privacy guaranteed by the Bill of Rights.

What did Dobbs v. Jackson do? ›

The Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization tore away the constitutional right to privacy and bodily autonomy by giving states increased rights to limit and even outlaw abortions. Fortunately, the decision did not ban abortions nationwide.

What happened on January 22, 1973? ›

On Jan. 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court, in its Roe v. Wade decision, declared a nationwide constitutional right to abortion.

Why was Roe v. Wade overturned for dummies? ›

The Supreme Court found that both provisions of the Texas law at issue placed "substantial obstacles" in the way of women seeking an abortion. And therefore, they violated the Constitution.

What was the US Supreme Court decision in 1973? ›

The Roe v. Wade Ruling, 1973. In its 1973 decision Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court recognized that the right to liberty in the Constitution, which protects personal privacy, includes the right to decide whether to continue a pregnancy.

What precedent did the Supreme Court set in 1973? ›

Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973) A person may choose to have an abortion until a fetus becomes viable, based on the right to privacy contained in the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Viability means the ability to live outside the womb, which usually happens between 24 and 28 weeks after conception.

What was the famous court case in 1973? ›

Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States generally protected a right to have an abortion.

Who did the Court favor in Roe v. Wade? ›

In Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decided that the right to privacy implied in the 14th Amendment protected abortion as a fundamental right. However, the government retained the power to regulate or restrict abortion access depending on the stage of pregnancy.

How did Roe v. Wade affect women's rights? ›

Roe rendered these laws unconstitutional, making abortion services vastly safer and more accessible to women throughout the country. The decision also set a legal precedent that affected more than 30 subsequent Supreme Court cases involving restrictions on access to abortion.

What does overturning Roe v. Wade mean? ›

The ruling overturned Roe — ending the federal constitutional right to abortion in the United States. As a result, one in three women now live in states where abortion is not accessible. In the first few months after Roe was overturned, 18 states banned or severely restricted abortion.

What amendment did Dobbs v. Jackson violate? ›

at 23–24. Thus, the Court held that the Fourteenth Amendment does not protect the right to an abortion.

What is the Gestational Age Act? ›

The Gestational Age Act would prohibit abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, except in the event that the pregnancy would endanger the mother's life.

What does stare decisis mean in simple terms? ›

Stare decisis means “to stand by things decided” in Latin. When a court faces a legal argument, if a previous court has ruled on the same or a closely related issue, then the court will make their decision in alignment with the previous court's decision.

Is Roe v. Wade a law or amendment? ›

On January 22, 1973, the Supreme Court handed down a decision that continues to divide the nation to this day. In Roe v. Wade, the Court ruled that a state law that banned abortions except to save the life of the mother was unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment.

What are the effects of the overturning of Roe v. Wade? ›

The loss of Roe then, not only puts significant burdens on reproductive health and the possibility of safe and sustainable communities as advocated in the reproductive justice framework, it is also a step away from the promise of religious freedom for all.

Which statement best explains the outcome of Roe v. Wade after the 1973 ruling? ›

Which statement best explains the outcome of Roe v. Wade after the 1973 ruling? Women gained the right to end pregnancies, while states gained the right to restrict abortions.

Which of the following was established by Roe v. Wade Quizlet? ›

What was Roe v. Wade? A Supreme Court decision that established a woman's legal right to an abortion.

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