Landmark Ruling Provides Victory for Abortion Rights Advocates
Background
In a significant victory for abortion rights advocates, a Wisconsin judge has reaffirmed her earlier ruling that state law permits consensual medical abortions. However, conservatives still have the option to appeal, opening up further legal avenues.
In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision that legalized abortion. This decision reactivated an 1849 Wisconsin law that conservatives interpreted as banning abortion, leading to the cessation of abortion providers in the state out of fear of violating the ban.
The Lawsuit
Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul filed a lawsuit challenging the ban’s validity shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court decision. He argued that the statutes were too old to enforce and that a 1985 law permitting abortions before fetuses can survive outside the womb supersedes the ban. Three doctors later joined the lawsuit as plaintiffs, expressing fear of being prosecuted for performing abortions.
In July, Dane County Circuit Judge Diane Schlipper ruled that the ban only prohibits attacks on women to kill their unborn children and does not apply to consensual medical abortions. While this ruling did not formally end the lawsuit, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin was confident enough in the decision to resume abortion procedures at their Madison and Milwaukee clinics in September.
Recent Ruling
Joel Urmanski, the Republican district attorney in Sheboygan County, where Planned Parenthood’s third abortion clinic is located, asked Schlipper to reconsider her ruling. However, Schlipper refused in a 14-page opinion issued on Tuesday, stating that Urmanski failed to demonstrate any misapplication of state law and declared the plaintiffs as the winners of the suit. However, she did not grant the doctors’ request for an injunction to prevent prosecutors from charging abortion providers.
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin expressed its expectation to resume abortion procedures at its Sheboygan facility “as soon as possible.”
While this ruling is considered a momentous victory, the lawsuit is likely far from over. Conservatives have the option to appeal, and it is anticipated that a case of this magnitude will ultimately reach the state Supreme Court. As liberal justices currently control the court, it is likely that Schlipper’s ruling will stand.
Diane Schlipper’s ruling reaffirming the law permitting consensual medical abortions in Wisconsin is seen as a significant victory for abortion rights advocates. However, the legal battle is far from over, as conservatives have the option to appeal and potentially take the case to the state Supreme Court.