Supreme Court of Arizona Rules Civil War-era Law Can Ban Abortions
Arizona is set to prohibit almost all abortions following a decision by its supreme court validating a law from the Civil War era.
This means that a law from 1864 criminalizing abortions except in cases where a mother’s life is in danger – with no exceptions for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest – will now be enforced.
Doctors who perform abortions could face sentences of two to five years in prison.
Democrats and President Joe Biden attributed the ruling to Donald Trump, who appointed three US Supreme Court justices who favored overturning the universal right to abortion in 2022.
Mr. Biden stated that the “cruel” ban was a result of the extreme agenda of Republican elected officials who are determined to strip away women’s freedom.
“Today’s decision to reinstate a law from a time when Arizona was not yet a state, the Civil War was ongoing, and women didn’t even have the right to vote will be remembered as a stain on our state,” said Kris Mayes, the state’s Democratic attorney general.
After the 2022 ruling that overturned the landmark Roe v Wade case, fourteen other states have already banned abortion at all stages of pregnancy.
In 1973, a lower court in Arizona blocked the Civil War-era law, and in 2019, another law superseded it, limiting abortion after 15 weeks.
However, following Roe v Wade being overturned, a Republican attorney general pushed to lift the injunction on the 1864 law, sparking a dispute over which law was enforceable.
Arizona attorney general Kris Mayes said the court’s decision was shameful. Pic: AP
In a 4-2 ruling on Tuesday, Arizona’s supreme court declared that the current 15-week ban was based solely on the existence of a federal constitutional right to abortion, which has since been disclaimed.
The court stated that there is now “no provision in federal or state law prohibiting” the 1864 ban.
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Arizona Democrats, along with activists across the US, have pledged to battle for the protection of abortion rights.
Campaigners in Arizona are already working to have an amendment addressing the issue added to election ballots in November.
However, the Center for Arizona Policy, a group supporting anti-abortion measures, backed the court’s decision, stating that it upholds the sanctity of all human life and spares women from the physical and emotional consequences of abortion.
The White House announced that Vice President Kamala Harris will visit Arizona this week to discuss abortion rights.
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Donald Trump, who will be running against Joe Biden in the upcoming election, recently stated that he believes abortion laws should be decided by individual states.
While he expressed pride in the reversal of Roe v Wade, he also emphasized that he supports abortions in cases of rape, incest, and when a mother’s life is at risk.
