RI Supreme Court upholds state law protecting abortion rights - The Providence Journal
PROVIDENCE — The state Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the state’s Reproductive Privacy Act, a law passed in 2019 to safeguard abortion rights in Rhode Island.
The high court upheld Superior Court Judge Melissa E. Darigan’s November 2019 dismissal of a challenge to the law brought by the advocacy group Catholics for Life and several other activists. The groups had argued that the state Constitution bars the unilateral passage of a law confirming a fundamental “right” to abortion.
The Reproductive Privacy Act, signed into law by Gov. Gina Raimondo in June 2019, codifies the federal abortion-rights ruling Roe v. Wade into state law. The move to preserve the “status quo” on abortion in Rhode Island began amid speculation that Roe v. Wade could be overturned during President Donald Trump’s administration.
Catholics for Life unsuccessfully attempted to block passage of the law by filing a temporary restraining order.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island, which was not a party to the case, filed a brief in support of the law’s constitutionality.
The state Supreme Court heard arguments Jan. 27, with Justices Erin Lynch Prata and Melissa Long recusing themselves. Lynch Prata played a central role in securing the passage of the law while serving in the state Senate.
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The act allows abortions up until the point a fetus could live outside the womb. An abortion would only be allowed later when necessary to preserve the health or life of the pregnant woman.
The issue was made more acute this week with the release of a draft U.S. Supreme Court opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito that would strike down Roe v. Wade.
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source: https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/courts/2022/05/04/ri-abortion-rights-law-supreme-court-ruling-reproductive-privacy-act/9643035002/
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