S.C. Supreme Court strikes down 6-week abortion ban

COLUMBIA, S.C. - In a 3-2 vote, the South Carolina Supreme Court struck down the state’s six week abortion ban.

The ruling said the law violates constitutional rights to privacy, “Six weeks is, quite simply, not a reasonable period of time” for a woman to know she is pregnant and “take reasonable steps to terminate that pregnancy.”

The state “unquestionably has the authority to limit the right of privacy that protects women from state interference with her decision, but any such limitation must be reasonable,” the ruling states.

Justice Kaye Hearn – the only woman on the six-person bench – penned the majority opinion.

She wrote, “Six weeks is, quite simply, not a reasonable period of time” for a woman to know she’s pregnant – and make a decision about ending that pregnancy.

Ann Warner of the Women’s Rights and Empowerment Network praised the ruling.

“We are thrilled,” she said. “We’re relieved that the decision has been made and that it is decisively in favor of tossing out the six-week abortion ban and upholding the right to abortion in South Carolina. It’s a victory for all of us in South Carolina.”

Republican Gov. Henry McMaster responded in a statement that the Supreme Court had exceeded its authority in this decision – and that he would work with the General Assembly to “correct this error.”

Also reacting was Dave Wilson of the Palmetto Family Council.

“This is a really sad day in South Carolina,” he said. “When the South Carolina Supreme Court decides that South Carolina citizens don’t have equal rights under the law, that the right to privacy supersedes the right to life, I think we’ve got a problem with our state Supreme Court right now.”

Hearn also wrote in the majority opinion that the state does have the authority to impose restrictions on abortion if they’re reasonable, saying the right to privacy is not absolute.

Those pushing for expanded abortion access say their work isn’t over, either.

“We’ve already seen multiple bans pre-filed, and we have been ready to fight those and we will be ready to fight those,” Warner said.

Thursday’s ruling is the latest step in a lengthy legal battle that began in 2022 after the United States Supreme Court struck down Roe v Wade’s legal precedent that protected abortion access.

“We respectfully, but strongly, disagree with the court’s ruling,” South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson said in a statement. “We’re working with the governor’s office and Legislature to review all our available options moving forward.”

South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Drew McKissick had this to say:

“Today’s decision by the South Carolina Supreme Court in overturning the Heartbeat Bill is extremely disappointing and yet another unfortunate example of judicial activism. The decision goes against the will of the voters in South Carolina and is yet another reminder of the critical need to reform the judicial selection and election process. We look forward to working with the General Assembly to promote that cause as well as to continue to protect the lives of the unborn.”

The White House also weighed in on Thursday’s decision: “We are encouraged by South Carolina’s Supreme Court ruling today on the state’s extreme and dangerous abortion ban. Women should be able to make their own decisions about their bodies.”

READ THE RULING:

Abortion providers who challenged the legislation were quick to respond to the ruling.

“The court’s decision means that our patients can continue to come to us, their trusted health care providers, to access abortion and other essential health services in South Carolina,” Planned Parenthood South Atlantic President and CEO Jenny Black said. “This is a monumental victory in the movement to protect legal abortion in the South. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and our partners will continue our fight to block any bill that allows politicians to interfere in people’s private health care decisions.”

Center for Reproductive Rights President and CEO Nancy Northup said the court “justly rejected this insidious attempt to take away South Carolinians’ fundamental rights under the state’s constitution.”

“These radical bans have wreaked havoc across the South and Midwest, but today’s decision means that the right to make deeply personal health care decisions will remain protected in South Carolina — an immense victory for South Carolinians and the entire region,” Northup said. “We know that lawmakers will double down on their relentless efforts to restrict essential health care, but we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to restore abortion access across the country once and for all.”

South Carolina House Speaker Murrell Smith took to Twitter after the decision was made.

“Unfortunately, the South Carolina Supreme Court followed the path of the U.S. Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade by creating a constitutional right to an abortion where none exists,” Smith said. “Today’s decision fails to respect the concept of separation of powers and strips the people of this state from having a say in a decision that was meant to reflect their voices. Instead, South Carolina is left with a decision that is not reflective of our state’s political process or will”

The court originally heard arguments on Oct. 19, 2021, from abortion providers who argued the bill violated the state constitution.

The bill was signed into law by Gov. Henry McMaster in February 2021 but was blocked from being enforced since right after McMaster signed it.

Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in June 2022, a federal judge lifted the ban allowing South Carolina’s bill to take effect a few days later.

On July 13, 2022, Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, Greenville Women’s Clinic, and two physicians filed a new lawsuit asking the state trial court to block the ban for violating South Carolinaians’ constitutional rights to privacy and equal protection by banning abortion, by providing inadequate protections for patients’ health and by conditioning sexual assault survivors’ access to abortion on the disclosure of their personal information to law enforcement.

The Court, on Aug. 17, 2022, issued a temporary injunction to block the law at the request of Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and Greenville Women’s Clinic ahead of hearing the October arguments.

Copyright 2023 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.