US: Idaho Supreme Court upholds near-total abortion ban after Planned Parenthood lawsuit

The state Supreme Court of Idaho ruled on Thursday that the Constitution of Idaho did not implicitly lay down abortion as a basic right, rejecting a number of lawsuits filed by Planned Parenthood,a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. The decision was a setback for those opposing Idaho legislation that went into effect in August, including one that banned abortions beyond six weeks of pregnancy unless necessary to save the life of the mother or the unborn child, or if rape or incest had occurred.

“This is a dark day for the state of Idaho. But our fight is far from over,” Rebecca Gibron, CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, said in a statement.

In an effort to stop new abortion restrictions, Planned Parenthood and a family doctor filed three lawsuits against the governor and legislative leaders. One of the statutes enables future relatives of an unborn child to bring a lawsuit against a medical expert who performs an abortion. Another made it unlawful for medical professionals to conduct an abortion upon the detection of electrical activity. Thethird essentially outlawed all abortions while allowing medical professionals to defend themselves in court by demonstrating that the procedure was performed to save the patient's life.

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The high court justices observed that Planned Parenthood contended the regulations violate constitutional principles including equal protection and due process.

Pressure on abortion clinics in neighbouring Oregon, where abortion rights are protected, has intensified as a result of the Idaho laws.

The South Carolina Supreme Court on Thursday overturned a law that prohibits abortion once heart activity is found, finding that the restriction violates a right to privacy guaranteed by the state constitution.

The South Carolina court said that the state has the ability to restrict a woman's right to privacy, which shields her from government meddling in her decisions, but such restriction must give her enough time to discover she is pregnant and "take reasonable efforts to terminate the pregnancy."

The Roe v. Wade ruling, which upheld an abortion right under the US Constitution, was overruled by the US Supreme Court last year, leading to the creation of the Idaho statutes.

(With inputs from agencies)

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