In a ruling on Tuesday, the Arizona Supreme Court upheld a 123-year-old law that prohibits terminating pregnancy except to save the life of the mother.
The law, which was signed in 1864, will also imprison healthcare workers, abortionists, or anyone who performs the procedure for two to five years. The top court of the state heard the arguments for the Planned Parenthood of Arizona v. Mays/Hazerigg case, which was filed last December.
The high court’s ruling overturned an opinion made by the appeals court claiming that a 15-week abortion limit approved in 2022 supersedes older abortion-related policies.
According to the Arizona Court of Appeals, these laws could be “harmonized” and allow doctors to terminate a pregnancy up until 15 weeks “when provided by licensed physicians in compliance with the state’s other laws and regulations.”
However, the state’s highest court verdict revealed otherwise: “The legislature has demonstrated its consistent design to restrict elective abortion to the degree permitted by the Supremacy Clause and an unwavering intent since 1864 to proscribe elective abortions absent a federal constitutional right—precisely what it intended and accomplished.”
“To date, our legislature has never affirmatively created a right to, or independently authorized, elective abortion. We defer, as we are constitutionally obligated to do, to the legislature’s judgment, which is accountable to, and thus reflects, the mutable will of our citizens,” the majority of the judges wrote in their opinion.
Dr. Eric Hazelrigg, representing Alliance Defending Freedom, applauded the decision, saying it is a victory for the “lives of countless innocent unborn children.”
“Life is a human right, and today’s decision allows the state to respect that right and fully protect life again—just as the legislature intended,” ADF Senior Counsel Jake Warner added.
“Life begins at conception. At just six weeks, unborn babies’ hearts begin to beat. At eight weeks, they have fingers and toes. And at 10 weeks, their unique fingerprints begin to form. Arizona’s pro-life law has protected unborn children for over 100 years, and the people of Arizona, through their elected representatives, have repeatedly affirmed that law, including as recently as 2022.”
Meanwhile, the fight for the right to life isn’t over, as advocates for abortion in the Grand Canyon State have 14 days before the ruling is enforceable.
Abortion activists are also working on gathering petitions that could allow unlimited abortion throughout the nine months of pregnancy. The Arizona Abortion Acess has gathered 100,000 ballot signatures, they needed to complete 383,293 before or on the July 2024 deadline.
