“As medical science progresses, maybe the law will progress along with it.”
-Jay Floyd, Henry Wade's Lawyer in first argument
Timeline
"Up to mid-1800s: Abortion is legal and common.
By 1900: Abortion is illegal virtually across the country.
1965: In Griswold v. Connecticut, the Supreme Court overturns a Connecticut law prohibiting use of contraceptives by married couples.
1972: In Eisenstadt v. Baird, the Supreme Court strikes down a law banning the distribution of birth control to unmarried adults.
1967 to 1973: Seventeen states rewrite their abortion laws. Four states -- Alaska, Hawaii, New York and Washington -- repeal their bans entirely.
1973: In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade strikes down a Texas law banning abortion. The court divides pregnancy into three trimesters and declares that during the first 13 weeks, the decision should be left up to "the attending physician, in consultation with his patient."
1976: In Planned Parenthood of Central Missouri v. Danforth, the Supreme Court strikes down requirements for parents and spouses to consent to abortions.
1980: In Harris v. McRae, the Supreme Court upholds the Hyde amendment, which restricts Medicaid funding of abortions to those procedures needed to protect the life of the pregnant woman and to those required in other special circumstances.
1983: In Akron v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health, the Supreme Court invalidates a city ordinance requiring, among other things, that all abortions after the first trimester be performed an a hospital and that parental consent be required for abortions on girls under 15.
1986: In Thornburgh v. American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, the Supreme Court strikes down a Pennsylvania statue requiring a woman seeking an abortion to receive from her doctor a state-sponsored lecture about potential risks and detailing alternatives.
1989: In Webster v. Reproductive Health Services, the Supreme Court upholds a Missouri law banning the use of public employees or facilities for abortion and requiring physicians to perform tests to determine viability on fetuses of more than 20 weeks' gestation.
1992: In Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania. v. Casey, the Supreme Court upholds the core of its Roe v. Wade ruling and ban states from outlawing most abortions. But it abandons the trimester plan and instead adopts a new test -- abortion regulations that present an "undue burden" on women's constitutional right will be prohibited." (NPR)
"1993: Abortion protester Michael Griffin shoots Dr. David Gunn outside a clinic in Pensacola, Fla., during a March demonstration; he is later sentenced to life in prison. In August, Dr. George Tiller is shot in the arm while leaving clinic in Wichita, Kan.; Rachelle ‘Shelley’ Shannon is convicted and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
1994: In July, Dr. John Bayard Britton and bodyguard are slain outside clinic in Pensacola, Fla., by former minister Paul J. Hill; Hill is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. In December, John Salvi walks into two Boston-area abortion clinics with a rifle and opens fire, killing two receptionists and wounding five others; he is sentenced to life in prison without parole, but he kills himself in prison in 1996.
1995: Norma McCorvey ("Jane Roe", who didn’t have an abortion because the court ruling came too late, is befriended by the national director of the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, who baptizes her upon her conversion to Christianity. McCorvey declares that she is pro-life and regrets her role in the landmark case.
1996: The abortion debate shifts to state bans on "partial-birth abortions" which generally include late-term abortions performed with the "dilation and evacuation" method. 104th Congress passes HR 1833, a bill to outlaw such procedures; President Clinton vetoes the bill.
1997: Two bombs blast outside an Atlanta building containing an abortion clinic; six people injured; the clinic is left in ruins and the blast blows out windows across the street." (Chicago Tribune)
"2000: Stenberg v. Carhart strikes down Nebraska’s ban on partial-birth abortion as unconstitutional. This effectively invalidated 29 of 31 similar statewide bans.
2003: Congress passed and President George W. Bush signed into law the "Partial-Birth Abortion" ban.
2004: U.S. District Courts in California, New York, and Nebraska declare the federal “Partial-Birth Abortion” ban unconstitutional.
2006: Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England invalidates New Hampshire’s parental notice law in its entirety, and remands the case for future consideration.
2011: US House of Representatives votes to remove federal funding of Planned Parenthood, but the Democrat-controlled Senate blocks the measure." (STL)
"Now:Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt places a woman’s right to obtain safe legal abortion on the line not only for the women of Texas, but also the entire country." (Suzi Alexander)
By 1900: Abortion is illegal virtually across the country.
1965: In Griswold v. Connecticut, the Supreme Court overturns a Connecticut law prohibiting use of contraceptives by married couples.
1972: In Eisenstadt v. Baird, the Supreme Court strikes down a law banning the distribution of birth control to unmarried adults.
1967 to 1973: Seventeen states rewrite their abortion laws. Four states -- Alaska, Hawaii, New York and Washington -- repeal their bans entirely.
1973: In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade strikes down a Texas law banning abortion. The court divides pregnancy into three trimesters and declares that during the first 13 weeks, the decision should be left up to "the attending physician, in consultation with his patient."
1976: In Planned Parenthood of Central Missouri v. Danforth, the Supreme Court strikes down requirements for parents and spouses to consent to abortions.
1980: In Harris v. McRae, the Supreme Court upholds the Hyde amendment, which restricts Medicaid funding of abortions to those procedures needed to protect the life of the pregnant woman and to those required in other special circumstances.
1983: In Akron v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health, the Supreme Court invalidates a city ordinance requiring, among other things, that all abortions after the first trimester be performed an a hospital and that parental consent be required for abortions on girls under 15.
1986: In Thornburgh v. American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, the Supreme Court strikes down a Pennsylvania statue requiring a woman seeking an abortion to receive from her doctor a state-sponsored lecture about potential risks and detailing alternatives.
1989: In Webster v. Reproductive Health Services, the Supreme Court upholds a Missouri law banning the use of public employees or facilities for abortion and requiring physicians to perform tests to determine viability on fetuses of more than 20 weeks' gestation.
1992: In Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania. v. Casey, the Supreme Court upholds the core of its Roe v. Wade ruling and ban states from outlawing most abortions. But it abandons the trimester plan and instead adopts a new test -- abortion regulations that present an "undue burden" on women's constitutional right will be prohibited." (NPR)
"1993: Abortion protester Michael Griffin shoots Dr. David Gunn outside a clinic in Pensacola, Fla., during a March demonstration; he is later sentenced to life in prison. In August, Dr. George Tiller is shot in the arm while leaving clinic in Wichita, Kan.; Rachelle ‘Shelley’ Shannon is convicted and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
1994: In July, Dr. John Bayard Britton and bodyguard are slain outside clinic in Pensacola, Fla., by former minister Paul J. Hill; Hill is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. In December, John Salvi walks into two Boston-area abortion clinics with a rifle and opens fire, killing two receptionists and wounding five others; he is sentenced to life in prison without parole, but he kills himself in prison in 1996.
1995: Norma McCorvey ("Jane Roe", who didn’t have an abortion because the court ruling came too late, is befriended by the national director of the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, who baptizes her upon her conversion to Christianity. McCorvey declares that she is pro-life and regrets her role in the landmark case.
1996: The abortion debate shifts to state bans on "partial-birth abortions" which generally include late-term abortions performed with the "dilation and evacuation" method. 104th Congress passes HR 1833, a bill to outlaw such procedures; President Clinton vetoes the bill.
1997: Two bombs blast outside an Atlanta building containing an abortion clinic; six people injured; the clinic is left in ruins and the blast blows out windows across the street." (Chicago Tribune)
"2000: Stenberg v. Carhart strikes down Nebraska’s ban on partial-birth abortion as unconstitutional. This effectively invalidated 29 of 31 similar statewide bans.
2003: Congress passed and President George W. Bush signed into law the "Partial-Birth Abortion" ban.
2004: U.S. District Courts in California, New York, and Nebraska declare the federal “Partial-Birth Abortion” ban unconstitutional.
2006: Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England invalidates New Hampshire’s parental notice law in its entirety, and remands the case for future consideration.
2011: US House of Representatives votes to remove federal funding of Planned Parenthood, but the Democrat-controlled Senate blocks the measure." (STL)
"Now:Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt places a woman’s right to obtain safe legal abortion on the line not only for the women of Texas, but also the entire country." (Suzi Alexander)