Georgia Supreme Court Reinstates Near-Ban On Abortion
The Georgia Supreme Court has reinstated a near-total ban on abortions, temporarily halting a lower court ruling that had invalidated the law while it reviews the state’s appeal.
According to the Associated Press, this move comes just one week after a judge ruled that Georgia's law, which bans most abortions after around six weeks of pregnancy, was unconstitutional. At this stage, many women may not yet realize they are pregnant.
Judge Robert McBurney of Fulton County Superior Court had declared on September 30 that Georgia’s state constitution protects the right to make personal healthcare decisions, which includes the decision to have an abortion.
However, the state Supreme Court has paused McBurney’s decision following a request from Republican State Attorney General Chris Carr, who is leading the appeal.
In his dissent, Georgia Justice John J. Ellington stated that the case “should not be predetermined in the State’s favor before the appeal is even docketed.” He went on to argue, “The State should not be in the business of enforcing laws that have been determined to violate fundamental rights guaranteed to millions of individuals under the Georgia Constitution.” He added, “The `status quo’ that should be maintained is the state of the law before the challenged laws took effect.”
On the other hand, Clare Bartlett, the executive director of the Georgia Life Alliance, called the Supreme Court’s action “appropriate.” Bartlett expressed concern that without the ruling, Georgia could become a destination for women from other states seeking surgical abortions. "There’s no right to privacy in the abortion process because there’s another individual involved," Bartlett stated. She further commented, "It goes back to protecting those who are the most vulnerable and can’t speak for themselves."
Meanwhile, Melissa Grant, the chief operating officer of carafem, an Atlanta-based abortion provider, expressed frustration. The provider had planned to increase its services following McBurney’s ruling. “Carafem will continue to offer abortion services following the letter of the law,” Grant said, “but we remain angry and disappointed and hope that eventually people will come back to a more sensible point of view on this issue that aligns with the people who need care.”
Georgia’s restrictive abortion law, signed by Republican Governor Brian Kemp in 2019, is one of several similar measures enacted by Republican-led states following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in 2022 to overturn Roe v. Wade. This ruling removed the federal right to abortion, shifting the decision to individual states.
The Georgia law prohibits most abortions after a “detectable human heartbeat” is found, which typically occurs at around six weeks into a pregnancy, according to the AP. The law also includes penalties of up to 10 years in prison for healthcare providers performing illegal abortions, though women who undergo abortions are not subject to criminal charges. Additionally, the law places physicians at risk of losing their medical licenses for performing unauthorized procedures.
The Georgia Supreme Court's recent order reinstated most of the abortion law but excluded one specific provision without explanation. The court stated that the state could not enforce a part of the law that would allow district attorneys access to the health records of women who have abortions.
Currently, 13 states in the U.S. enforce abortion bans at all stages of pregnancy, and four states restrict abortions after around six weeks.
In his earlier ruling, McBurney wrote that “liberty in Georgia includes in its meaning, in its protections, and in its bundle of rights the power of a woman to control her own body, to decide what happens to it and in it, and to reject state interference with her healthcare choices.” He argued that society could only intervene once a fetus reaches viability, at which point the fetus could survive outside the womb.
McBurney’s decision had rolled back abortion restrictions to a previous Georgia law, which set a limit of 22 to 24 weeks for most abortions. Governor Kemp criticized the ruling, stating: “The will of Georgians and their representatives has been overruled by the personal beliefs of one judge.”