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Why Florida isn't losing the right to an abortion ... yet
Tampa Bay TimesNo Paywall
While the overturn of Roe v. Wade dramatically alters the landscape of abortion rights nationally, in Florida, the decision has no immediate effect on the legality of abortion.
That’s because Florida’s abortion laws have to fall within the boundaries of not one, but two constitutions, said Danaya Wright, a professor of law at the University of Florida.
The first is the U.S. Constitution, which no longer protects a person’s right to abortion following the U.S. Supreme Court’s bombshell decision this week in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
The second is the Florida Constitution.
That’s because Florida’s abortion laws have to fall within the boundaries of not one, but two constitutions, said Danaya Wright, a professor of law at the University of Florida.
The first is the U.S. Constitution, which no longer protects a person’s right to abortion following the U.S. Supreme Court’s bombshell decision this week in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
The second is the Florida Constitution.
47 words, one controversy
The difference in protections largely comes down to the 1980 inclusion of a 47-word amendment to the Florida Constitution guaranteeing the right to privacy.
“Every natural person has the right to be let alone and free from governmental intrusion into the person’s private life except as otherwise provided herein,” the document reads.
The difference in protections largely comes down to the 1980 inclusion of a 47-word amendment to the Florida Constitution guaranteeing the right to privacy.
“Every natural person has the right to be let alone and free from governmental intrusion into the person’s private life except as otherwise provided herein,” the document reads.
But the U.S. Constitution doesn’t specifically include the word privacy in its text.
The Florida constitution does. In a 1989 case, the state’s Supreme Court ruled that the privacy clause covered the right to an abortion.
The Florida constitution does. In a 1989 case, the state’s Supreme Court ruled that the privacy clause covered the right to an abortion.
What did voters mean in 1980?
In 1989, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that the state Constitution offered extensive protections for abortion rights. Its opinion was largely concerned with defining “privacy” in a constitutional sense.
“We can conceive of few more personal or private decisions concerning one’s body that one can make in the course of a lifetime,” the opinion read.
John Stemberger, a conservative lawyer who’s been a leader in the push to restrict abortion rights in Florida, said that court was litigating the wrong question. They should have been asking what voters understood “privacy” to mean when they approved the 1980 constitutional amendment, he said.
In 1989, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that the state Constitution offered extensive protections for abortion rights. Its opinion was largely concerned with defining “privacy” in a constitutional sense.
“We can conceive of few more personal or private decisions concerning one’s body that one can make in the course of a lifetime,” the opinion read.
John Stemberger, a conservative lawyer who’s been a leader in the push to restrict abortion rights in Florida, said that court was litigating the wrong question. They should have been asking what voters understood “privacy” to mean when they approved the 1980 constitutional amendment, he said.
While most Florida voters say in polls that they want to protect abortion access, for the last quarter-century, they have also sent Republican majorities to Tallahassee — the party that is largely hostile to abortion rights.
