Abortion advocates are sleeping a little less easily these nights.
A major ruling was reversed at the appellate level in Bristol Regional Women’s Center v. Slatery case that will be taken as a significant blow against abortion rights.
While the case is now likely to find its way to the Supreme Court, the ruling will stand if the Supreme Court punts, as it has done in the past on this issue as well as there already being a precedent in place on the matter.
Not Illegal
The original law in Tennessee required a 48-hour waiting period for women seeking an abortion.
The law was put in place to ensure a woman was not rushed into a decision she would later regret or perhaps made before considering all her options, such as carrying to term, then putting the child up for adoption.
A precedent on this had already been set by the Supreme Court in Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
In that instance, the Supreme Court ruled that a 24-hour waiting period was permissible.
Even so, the Tennessee district court ruled against the waiting period.
Judge Amul Thapar, a Trump appointee, referred to the Supreme Court case in his majority (9-7) opinion.
He wrote, “Before making life’s big decisions, it is often wise to take time to reflect. The people of Tennessee believed that having an abortion was one of those decisions.
“So they passed a law requiring a waiting period of 48 hours. Although the Supreme Court upheld a similar 24-hour waiting period in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the district court said that Tennessee’s waiting period violates a woman’s right to have an abortion.
“We disagree and reverse.”
The Judge went on to say the new rule is constitutional because it is not a “substantial obstacle to abortion for a large fraction of women seeking previability abortions in Tennessee.”
Planned Parenthood stated that it would fight the decision, again trying to pitch the idea that abortion is health care.
Source: Breitbart