Wisconsin Supreme Court Grapples with Whether State’s 175-Year-Old Abortion Ban is Valid
Conservative Prosecutor’s Attorney Struggles to Persuade Court
A conservative prosecutor’s attorney struggled Monday to persuade the Wisconsin Supreme Court to reactivate the state’s 175-year-old abortion ban, drawing a tongue-lashing from two of the court’s liberal justices during oral arguments.
Background
Sheboygan County’s Republican district attorney, Joel Urmanski, has asked the high court to overturn a Dane County judge’s ruling last year that invalidated the ban. A ruling isn’t expected for weeks, but abortion advocates almost certainly will win the case given that liberal justices control the court. One of them, Janet Protasiewicz, remarked on the campaign trail that she supports abortion rights.
Oral Arguments
Monday’s two-hour session amounted to little more than political theater. Liberal Justice Rebecca Dallet told Urmanski’s attorney, Matthew Thome, that the ban was passed in 1849 by white men who held all the power and that he was ignoring everything that has happened since. Jill Karofsky, another liberal justice, pointed out that the ban provides no exceptions for rape or incest and that reactivation could result in doctors withholding medical care. She told Thome that he was essentially asking the court to sign a “death warrant” for women and children in Wisconsin.
“This is the world gone mad,” Karofsky said.
The Ban’s History
The ban stood until 1973, when the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide nullified it. Legislators never repealed the ban, however, and conservatives have argued the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe two years ago reactivated it.
Current Legal Dispute
Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul filed a lawsuit challenging the law in 2022. He argued that a 1985 Wisconsin law that prohibits abortion after a fetus reaches the point where it can survive outside the womb supersedes the ban. Some babies can survive with medical help after 21 weeks of gestation.
Urmanski contends that the ban was never repealed and that it can co-exist with the 1985 law because that law didn’t legalize abortion at any point. Other modern-day abortion restrictions also don’t legalize the practice, he argues.
Judge’s Ruling
Dane County Circuit Judge Diane Schlipper ruled last year that the ban outlaws feticide — which she defined as the killing of a fetus without the mother’s consent — but not consensual abortions. The ruling emboldened Planned Parenthood to resume offering abortions in Wisconsin after halting procedures after Roe was overturned.
Conclusion
The Wisconsin Supreme Court’s decision on the validity of the state’s 175-year-old abortion ban is expected to have significant implications for the state’s reproductive rights. While a ruling is not expected for weeks, abortion advocates are likely to win the case given the liberal majority on the court.
FAQs
* What is the Wisconsin Supreme Court considering?
+ The court is considering whether the state’s 175-year-old abortion ban is valid.
* Who is challenging the ban?
+ Sheboygan County’s Republican district attorney, Joel Urmanski, is challenging the ban.
* What is the current legal dispute?
+ The dispute centers on whether the 1985 Wisconsin law that prohibits abortion after a fetus reaches the point where it can survive outside the womb supersedes the ban.
* What are the implications of the court’s decision?
+ The decision will have significant implications for the state’s reproductive rights.
