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Abortion advocates gather in the United States Supreme Court in January 2018. (Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post)
A decades-old North Carolina law that banned abortions for women after their twentieth week of pregnancy is unconstitutional, a federal judge said Monday.
The 1973 Act provided for certain allowances for medical reasons, but a 2015 amendment that restricts these exemptions prompted abortion rights groups to take legal action in 2016.
US District Judge William Osteen joined the advocacy groups this week, saying the country's courts had overturned "abortion bans a week or by event" and that North was no different.
Under the decision – which will come into effect in 60 days, pending a state appeal or revised legislation – women will be able to seek abortion at any time before the doctor determines that the fetus is "viable" and can survive outside the prison. uterus.
Those advocating for better access to abortions welcomed this decision, which is part of a wave of new restrictions imposed by GOP-controlled states.
"This decision is just a reminder of the law," said Andrew Beck, a lawyer for the US Civil Liberties Union (US Civil Liberties Union), in an interview with the Washington Post. "Politicians should not interfere in women's health in a way that is actually illegal. This decision puts health and well-being at the forefront. "
Last week, the Mississippi Republican governor enacted a law that, according to many, was the country's most restrictive abortion ban, an "accelerated bill" that could ban abortion after just six months. weeks of pregnancy.
Before Mississippi, there was Kentucky, where, earlier this month, another Conservative governor tried to adopt a similar measure that was quickly blocked by a federal judge. This year alone, at least eleven states – including some of the most populous in the country, such as Texas and Florida – have passed legislation on fetal heartbeats.
"There have been a whole bunch of politicians who have tried to ban abortions, whether it's six weeks or 20 weeks," Beck said. "We should all be concerned that there are extremist politicians across the country who prohibit abortions. . . . All of this is happening at the state level. "
The new and conceivable package could foreshadow future battles, a back-and-forth between right-wing and religious groups hoping to end up in the Supreme Court, where a new conservative majority might reconsider the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion at the national level.
But decisions like this week in North Carolina reassure abortion groups, even temporary, that the court system will preserve precedents.
"This decision is firmly grounded in the US Supreme Court decisions upholding the right to abortion," Elizabeth Nash, state affairs official at the Guttmacher Institute, told The Post. "Given that there are so many anticipations that the court will undermine or overthrow Roe v. Wadeit is reassuring to see the abortion ban of 20 weeks in North Carolina canceled. "
Nash said the next gesture of the legislature would be revealing. Legislators in the House and Senate controlled by Republicans have about two months and about three choices: to appeal the decision and pursue the litigation in court, to propose an alternative law on abortion or to withdraw and leave the decision of the judge to take effect.
Spokespeople of the highest GOP officials told The Associated Press that party leaders were reviewing the decision.
The chair of the anti-abortion group, March for Life, said in a statement that she hoped the state would appeal the decision.
"The Constitution is designed to protect the rights of all Americans, including the most vulnerable," said Jeanne Mancini. "From the point of view of common sense and public opinion, it is difficult to understand how anyone could deny fundamental legal protection, the right to life, to an unborn child who can feel the pain and survive in outside the uterus. "
The decision is "disappointing, but not discouraging," said Ingrid Duran, legislative director of the National Committee on the Right to Life.
"We will find ways to protect unborn children in North Carolina and elsewhere," she said.
Lawyers have already described 2019 as an "unprecedented" year for anti-abortion legislation.
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