1864 Arizona law that banned nearly all abortions is now in effect, U.S Judge rules

Following the removal of an injunction that kept a pre-statehood abortion law in Arizona dormant for close to five decades by a Pima County judge, the law banning abortions under all circumstances can again be enforced in Arizona.

Reactions after the ruling:

The Friday decision was immediately deplored by abortion rights advocates and was simultaneously praised by abortion foes. Just ahead of November's midterm elections, this ruling stands to be a possible galvanizing force.

After the overturning of Roe v. Wade in June by the U.S Supreme court which was a 1973 ruling that legalized abortion all over the country, Mark Brnovich, the Republican state Attorney General requested the court to rule on the injection.


In the ruling of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case in Mississippi earlier this year, the question of abortion policy was put back in the hands of states.

There was confusion about what was legal among abortion providers, and court challenge was also happening because of the conflicting laws in Arizona.

The Friday ruling by Kelle Johnson, the Pima County Superior Court Judge, enforced the old law and provided clarity that abortion in all cases is banned except for saving the life of the pregnant person.

Far from settled

Though the state of abortion law in Arizona is far from settled because the abortion rights activists are likely to appeal. The providers expressed enduring confusion, outrage, and shock over the court’s decision that came a day before another law concerning abortion was scheduled to go into effect.

CEO of Planned Parenthood Arizona, Brittany Fonteno said that Friday’s ruling has resulted in sending “Arizonans back nearly 150 years”. She further added that no archaic law should dictate “how we live” and “our reproductive freedom.”

It was in 1864 that the first territorial Legislature of Arizona codified the law's basic provisions.

FAQs:

1. Is abortion legal in all states?
Roughly in half of the states, there will be an abortion ban because of the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S supreme court.

1. Where is abortion illegal?
Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia, Wisconsin