Michigan’s Abortion Ban Ruled Unconstitutional
June 6, 2007
A federal appeals court ruled Monday that a Michigan statute, which banned certain abortion procedures, was unconstitutional. According to the court, the Legal Birth Definition Act was worded so broadly that in addition to banning intact dilation and extraction procedures, it would also prohibit other legal abortion methods. The law “showed no meaningful attempt to comply with the constitutional limitations articulated by federal courts in the area of abortion law,” Judge Boyce F. Martin Jr. wrote for the court.
This is the third attempt in the last ten years by Michigan lawmakers to restrict access to abortion procedures. In April, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a federal law banning certain abortion procedures after the first trimester.