After a court determined that a 1901 pre-statehood legislation prohibiting the procedure is now the law in the state, all abortions are essentially prohibited in Arizona.
Due to the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June, the prohibition is now in effect. On September 24, it will become effective.
After hearing arguments on Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s motion to remove the injunction, Pima County Superior Court Judge Kellie Johnson made her ruling more than a month after hearing the arguments.
According to KGUN, Johnson wrote in the decision that “the court decides that it must vacate the judgement in its entirety” since the legal foundation for the judgement made in 1973 has been invalidated.
A Pima County court lifted an injunction on Arizona’s abortion law, Brnovich tweeted after the ruling. We commend the court for preserving legislative intent and establishing clarity and consistency on this crucial matter. I have protected Arizonans who are most in need and will do so in the future.
Nearly 20 years before women were granted the right to vote in the United States, the Arizona Comstock Law, named after Christian leader Anthony Comstock, was established.
According to the new statute, Republican Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell stated she would use judgement when pursuing rape and incest victims.
According to Brahm Resnik of KPNX, Mitchell stated: “I don’t want to revictimize the victim.”
An injunction has prevented the implementation of a statute that prohibits almost all abortions and has been in effect since before Arizona became a state. If the woman’s life is in danger, there is just one exception.
The decision also implies that those in need of abortions would need to go to another state.
The verdict is probably going to be appealed. With the midterm elections approaching, the decision may potentially have an impact on the state’s hotly fought senate and gubernatorial campaigns.
It had been in existence since not long after the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, which determined that women had a constitutional right to an abortion.
On June 24, the Supreme Court reversed Roe and said that abortion may be regulated as the state sees fit.
Brnovich tweeted on June 30 that “Our office has found that the Legislature has made its intentions on abortion laws plain.”
The pre-statehood statute, ARS 13-3603, is back in existence and won’t be repealed, he stressed.
As governments and courts have taken action, what is permitted in each state has changed. There are bans on abortion at any stage of pregnancy in 12 states with Republican governors.
In another state, Wisconsin, clinics have ceased offering abortions due to legal disputes regarding the status of an 1849 prohibition. Florida and Utah have restrictions that take effect at 15 and 18 weeks of gestation, respectively, while Georgia prohibits abortions once foetal heart activity is identified.
This story is still developing. Please return to this page for updates.