Gov. Gretchen Whitmer sued to protect abortion rights, asking a Michigan court to recognize a right to abortion under the state constitution and to overturn a 176-year-old ban in the state that may take effect if the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling is vacated.
Michigan’s law makes it a felony to use an instrument or administer any substance with the intent “to procure the miscarriage” of a woman unless necessary to preserve her life.
Whitmer wants the Michigan Supreme Court to declare a state constitutional right to abortion and to strike down the 1931 law, which could go back into effect if Roe is overturned or weakened. The lawsuit argues that the law is invalid under the due process and equal protection clauses of the state constitution.Michigan could soon be left with a near-total ban without even exceptions for rape and incest — “one of the most extreme laws in the country,” Whitmer said.
The complaint says that while the Michigan Supreme Court in 1973 ruled that Roe limited the effect of the state ban, the right to abortion has been undermined over 50 years of litigation in federal courts. The state’s high court has not said whether the state constitution protects the right. The Michigan Court of Appeals, in 1997, ruled there is no state constitutional right to abortion — a reason the Michigan Supreme Court should step in immediately, according to her office.
Also Thursday, seven Democratic county prosecutors who were named in the lawsuit pledged to not enforce the anti-abortion law. “We cannot and will not support criminalizing reproductive freedom or creating unsafe, untenable situations for health care providers and those who seek abortions in our communities,” said the elected prosecutors in Wayne, Oakland, Genesee, Washtenaw, Ingham, Kalamazoo and Marquette counties. “Instead, we will continue to dedicate our limited resources towards the prosecution of serious crimes and the pursuit of justice for all.
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