Alabama Abortion Law: Roe V. Wade Violation?

In 2019, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed the Alabama Human Life Protection Act, effectively banning abortion in the state. The law, which does not make exceptions for rape or incest, was designed to challenge Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that established a constitutional right to abortion. The Alabama law bans abortion at every stage of pregnancy, except when the mother's life is threatened, and makes abortion a felony, with doctors facing up to 99 years in prison if convicted. The Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade held that abortion regulations should be based on trimesters, with the abortion decision left to the woman's discretion in the first trimester, and increasing restrictions in the second and third trimesters. The Alabama law directly contradicts this ruling, and sets up a challenge to Roe v. Wade that could result in a Supreme Court battle.

Alabama's abortion ban

The bill was passed by the Alabama Senate and House with overwhelming support and was designed to challenge Roe v. Wade in the Supreme Court. Ivey acknowledged that the bill may be "unenforceable" in light of Roe v. Wade but stated that the bill's sponsors "believe that it is time, once again, for the U.S. Supreme Court to revisit this important matter".

The bill sparked outcry from abortion rights activists across the country, with the Alabama ACLU announcing it would file a lawsuit to halt the legislation. The bill was also criticised for not providing exceptions for victims of rape or incest.

In June 2022, the Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, holding that abortion is not a constitutional right. Following this decision, abortion services in Alabama were halted, under a pre-existing 1951 abortion ban and the 2019 law.

Roe v. Wade's 1973 ruling

In the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court established a constitutional right to abortion. The Court determined abortion regulations based on trimesters:

• In the first trimester, the abortion decision was "solely at the discretion of the woman".
• During the second trimester, "the state could regulate (but not outlaw) abortions in the interests of the mother’s health".
• After the second trimester, "the fetus became viable, and the state could regulate or outlaw abortions in the interest of the potential life except when necessary to preserve the life or health of the mother".

The ruling recognised that the right to liberty in the Constitution, which protects personal privacy, includes the right to decide whether to continue a pregnancy. It placed reproductive decision-making alongside other fundamental rights, such as freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

The Court required the state to justify any interference with the right to access abortion by showing that it had a "compelling interest", and held that no interest was compelling enough to ban abortion before viability. After the point of viability, the state could ban abortion or take other steps to promote its interest in protecting the fetus. However, even after that point, abortion must be permitted to protect a patient's life and health.

The Roe v. Wade ruling made state abortion bans unconstitutional, and abortion care legal, more accessible, and safer throughout the country.

The Supreme Court's 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade

In 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a 1973 ruling that established a constitutional right to abortion in the United States. The original ruling held that a set of Texas statutes criminalizing abortion in most instances violated a constitutional right to privacy, implicit in the liberty guarantee of the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

The 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade was the result of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization case, which challenged a Mississippi state law banning most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, well before the point of fetal viability. The Supreme Court upheld the Mississippi law and overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the nearly 50-year guarantee of a constitutional right to abortion.

The impact of this decision was significant, with several states adopting laws that drastically limited access to abortion. The overturning of Roe v. Wade also shifted the power to set abortion policies to the states, leading to a variety of laws and protections being implemented across the country.

The Alabama abortion law, also known as the Human Life Protection Act, completely illegalizes abortion with exceptions for "lethal anomalies" and medical emergencies that threaten the mother's life. Only abortion providers can be charged and face life imprisonment if found guilty of performing abortions.

The overturning of Roe v. Wade has sparked protests and condemnation from abortion rights supporters, who argue that it endangers women's lives and restricts their reproductive freedom. On the other hand, those who support the decision believe it upholds the rights of the unborn and reinforces traditional values.

The Human Life Protection Act

The Act classifies the performance of an illegal abortion as a Class A felony, equivalent to rape and murder. Doctors found guilty under its provisions could receive sentences ranging from 10 years to 99 years or life imprisonment. An attempt to perform an illegal abortion is classified as a Class C felony. The bill also states that women receiving abortions will not be held criminally or civilly liable.

The impact on vulnerable women

Alabama's abortion ban will disproportionately affect women of colour and poor women, according to opponents. The state senator Linda Coleman-Madison, one of four black Democrats who spent hours denouncing the bill before it passed, said:

> "For those with the means, it doesn’t matter that Alabama bans it. They’re going to find another state, find another country... We all know about the back alleys, the basements. People will try going online now. That’s going to be very popular now: how can you mix a concoction to have an abortion? People are going to have abortions. The problem is, it’s going to always be unsafe, inaccessible for those people who have lesser means."

Black and Hispanic women are more likely to experience unintended pregnancies than white women, and more likely to get abortions. In 2017, the abortion rate for black women was 27 per 1,000 women of reproductive age, compared with 18 for Hispanic women and 10 for white women. Among US abortion patients, 75% are poor or low-income, including 49% who live below the federal poverty level.

Alabama's abortion ban will also have a significant impact on vulnerable women who are experiencing miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies. While abortion is completely illegal in Alabama, these procedures are still legal and available to women in the state. However, abortion rights advocates worry that the confusion around the issue may lead to women being denied the care they need.

Furthermore, the ban will likely lead to a shortage of doctors in the state, as medical professionals may choose not to move to or remain in Alabama if they face criminal charges for performing abortions. This will particularly affect rural women, poor women, and women of colour, who already face significant barriers to accessing healthcare. Alabama has the nation's highest rate of cervical cancer deaths, and black women are twice as likely to die from this preventable cancer as white women. Infant mortality rates are also among the highest in the nation.

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