Attendees at an event for Justice Allison Riggs on June 17, 2024. Riggs was appointed to serve on the North Carolina Supreme Court in September of 2023 and is running for a full term in 2024. (Jenny Warburg) |
By Malliga Och | Since the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision gave states the authority to decide whether women can access legal abortions, state supreme courts are emerging as vital arenas in the battle over bodily autonomy.
The high courts in Florida, South Carolina, Georgia and Iowa upheld six-week abortion bans. The Texas Supreme Court denied an abortion to a woman whose fetus had a fatal condition. Alabama ruled that embryos are children, briefly halting in vitro fertilization in the state.
In a hopeful turn, 2023 saw the Wisconsin Supreme Court shift to a 4-3 majority poised to protect abortion rights after Justice Janet Protasiewicz won her race by highlighting her pro-abortion stance.
According to the Center for Reproductive Rights, 30 states have heard cases challenging abortion restrictions. The supreme courts in 11 states have recognized abortion rights under their state constitutions; five courts have come to the opposite conclusion.
Beyond the constitutionality of abortion bans, state supreme courts also decide how to interpret the medical exceptions within these laws. According to Alexander Wilson, a staff attorney at the Center for Reproductive Rights, the organization has been working hard to get clarification from courts about the exceptions.
Without proper clarification, “people’s lives are at risk because [doctors] are left to choose between facing significant penalties or providing care,” Wilson said.
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