Laws, Lies and the Abortion Debate

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It has been three years since the Supreme Court’s conservative majority abruptly departed from precedent to uphold a federal ban on a particular method of abortion. Emboldened, foes of reproductive freedom are pressing new attacks on women’s rights and health.

In Utah, Gov. Gary Herbert, a Republican, has signed a bill that would criminalize certain behavior by women that results in miscarriage. It was prompted by a sad and strange case last year in which a teenager who was seven months pregnant sought to induce a miscarriage by hiring a man to beat her. The measure exempts lawful abortions, and particularly worrisome language about “reckless” acts has been removed. But the law still raises concern about zealous prosecutors using a woman’s difficult choices to open an investigation.

In Oklahoma, the Center for Reproductive Rights succeeded last week in blocking a burdensome measure designed to discourage abortions by requiring preprocedure sonograms and exempting physicians from liability for failing to disclose fetal abnormalities. But the ruling turned on a technical flaw in the law, and its supporters are expected to try again.

An even more ominous assault on reproductive freedom is looming in Nebraska. A blatantly unconstitutional measure moving through the State Legislature would ban abortions at 20 weeks’ gestation — before viability and earlier than constitutionally allowed. Its narrow health exception excludes mental health. Indeed, the bill prohibits doctors from performing an abortion to avoid a serious risk that the woman may commit suicide.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/10/opinion/10wed2.html?th&emc=th