On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Supreme Court declared that it will review two challenges to a 175-year-old abortion law directly, which conservatives assert prohibits the procedure, without going through the lower courts.
According to Associated Press., optimism is being expressed by abortion advocates regarding the outcome of the case, as a result of the current liberal majority in the court and the pro-abortion remarks made by a liberal justice during her campaign.
The statutes in question were put into effect in 1849 and were primarily understood to forbid abortions except for cases where the mother’s life was in danger.
The laws that were invalidated by the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling still remained without any repeal. However, their reactivation came into effect after the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul filed a lawsuit in 2022 to contest the statutes, stating that they were obsolete and that the law from 1985, which allows abortions before fetal viability, should be given priority.
Last year, a Dane County judge made a ruling that clarified that the statutes only criminalize the act of attacking a woman with the intention of killing her unborn baby. This ruling did not ban abortions, and as a result, Planned Parenthood resumed their abortion services in Wisconsin following the decision of the Supreme Court.
The request to overturn the ruling directly without going through the lower appellate courts was made by Sheboygan County District Attorney Joel Urmanski, a Republican, in February. He contended that the ruling has implications for the entire state.
Planned Parenthood case of Wisconsin wasted no time in taking legal action against Urmanski. They filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court, seeking a declaration that the outdated 1849 statutes were unconstitutional. The organization argued that a woman’s right to control her own body was a fundamental aspect of the state constitution’s promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
All of the justices on the Supreme Court agreed to hear Urmanski’s appeal. In a vote of 4-3, the Court decided to take on the Planned Parenthood case. The four liberal justices were in favor of taking on the case, while the three conservative justices were opposed.
According to legal experts, convincing the liberal majority of the court to uphold the statutes will pose a significant challenge.
During her campaign, Liberal Justice Janet Protasiewicz broke the norm of judicial candidates by openly supporting abortion rights. Typically, judicial candidates refrain from discussing their personal views to remain impartial.
The liberal majority faced criticism from conservative justices for supposedly letting political motives sway their judgments.
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin’s Chief Strategy Officer, Michelle Velasquez, expressed her elation upon hearing that the court had agreed to take on their case, emphasizing the importance of obtaining clarity on the legality of abortion in the state.
Anti-abortion groups have criticized the decision, with Heather Weininger, Executive Director of Wisconsin Right to Life, condemning the court’s action. Weininger deemed it a misuse of the judicial system to promote abortion rights.
After a draft order accepting the Planned Parenthood case was leaked, Chief Justice Annette Ziegler called for an investigation, which led to the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s review of these cases.
