Days after the Supreme court overruled Roe v. Wade, the legal spotlight is shifting to state courts, where judges are on the front lines in determining the future of abortion.
Judges from a few states have put state abortion bans on hold for now, including a judge from Houston Texas, and judges in Utah and Louisiana. In Wisconsin, Attorney General Josh Kaul, filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging a state law from 1849 banning abortion.
The number of state-level legal battles is expected to continue to grow. While the Supreme Court has removed protections under the U.S. Constitution for a woman’s right to choose an abortion, states have their own constitutions and state laws to interpret on the issue.
“Most people think the U.S. Constitution is the final word on our individual rights but it is not,” said Professor Lindquist, “Pro-choice plaintiffs are now looking to state constitutions as a source of individual rights, including the right to an abortion.”