Wisconsin Judge Allows Challenge to Abortion Law to Proceed
In her preliminary ruling on Friday that allowed the case to advance, Judge Diane Schlipper indicated that she did not believe that doctors could be prosecuted for performing consensual abortions before a fetus reached viability. She wrote that “there is no such thing as an ‘1849 abortion ban’ in Wisconsin.”
The decision by Judge Schlipper, of the Circuit Court in Dane County, gave credence to the legal arguments used by abortion-rights supporters and kept open a judicial path to restore abortion access. But the immediate effect of her decision was limited, and the final say on the case is widely expected to come from a higher court.
“Today’s ruling is a major victory in our fight to restore reproductive freedom in Wisconsin,” said Attorney General Josh Kaul, a Democrat who brought the lawsuit challenging the measure, in a statement. “While this ruling does not resolve the case and won’t be the final word in this litigation,” he said, it made clear that the law “should not be interpreted to criminalize consensual abortions.”
The ruling on Friday stemmed from a request by Joel Urmanski, the district attorney in Sheboygan County and a defendant in the lawsuit, to dismiss the case. Mr. Urmanski, a Republican, had previously indicated to local reporters that he would be open to prosecuting abortion providers under the 1849 law if a case was presented to his office.
Mr. Urmanski said in an email on Friday that he was in court and had not yet reviewed the ruling. He declined to comment further. Two lawyers representing him in the case did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
Source: The New York Times
