The Arizona Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld an 1864 law that made abortion a felony.
What does that mean?
The 4-2 ruling rejected arguments for a 15-week abortion ban, making the practice almost completely illegal in the state.
The Civil War-era law was passed decades before Arizona became a state in 1912. The court lifted the stay on this law. That means the law will take effect within her 14 days.
This makes it a crime to perform or assist a pregnant person in obtaining an abortion, punishable by two to five years in prison. There are no exceptions for rape or incest, but there are exceptions “if necessary” to save the life of a pregnant person.
Voters can lift the restrictions through a November ballot measure. The law would effectively close abortion clinics in the state, but it is not yet known how it will be enforced.
Opposition from all levels and quarters
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have publicly opposed the state Supreme Court’s decision.
president biden slammed This decision was made as part of the Republican Party’s “extreme” policies.Biden’s campaign criticized Former President Trump took to social media to praise his role in appointing three of the five Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The state’s 15-week abortion ban was signed in 2022 by then-Gov. Doug Ducey (R) is stripped. Ducey said the ruling was “not the outcome I was hoping for” and that the 15-week suspension was a “sensible conservative approach” to a “very sensitive issue.”
Attorney General Chris Mays (D) said the decision is “far from the end of the debate” about reproductive freedom in the state. She said that while she was attorney general, “no woman or doctor would be prosecuted under this draconian law.”
Kali Lake and state Senate candidate Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) both issued statements opposing the decision. Other lawmakers also oppose the legislation, including Rep. Greg Stanton (D-Ariz.) and Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.).
Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) called this a “dark day for Arizona” and urged lawmakers to “do the right thing now” and repeal the 1864 law “immediately.”
Hobbs issued an executive order prohibiting county attorneys from prosecuting women and doctors for performing abortions. she said “Still standing.” She Said She “will not rest” and “will not stop fighting until we secure abortion rights.”
legislative text
ARS 13-3603 refers to a provision in state law that prohibits abortion in nearly all cases. The text reads:
“A person who provides, supplies or administers, or arranges for a pregnant woman to take, any medicine, drug or substance, or any device or other substance, with the intent to cause the pregnant woman to miscarry; A person who uses or employs means, unless: it is necessary to save her life, shall be sentenced to imprisonment in a state prison for not less than two years nor more than five years.”
The state Supreme Court noted in Tuesday’s decision that the article was first promulgated into governing law by Arizona’s First Legislative Assembly. It was then fully adopted after becoming Arizona State.
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