Despite Leak, Many Threats to Abortion in Idaho

WASHINGTON - June 26, 2024 - PRLog -- Despite the leak of an apparent ruling which suggests that the Supreme Court is going to continue, at least for now, to permit abortions in Idaho even when the life of the mother is not in immediate danger, many men are already suing, and many more are apparently planning to sue, in Idaho and elsewhere, to stop abortions and/or to deter any third parties from aiding in such procedures, says public interest law professor John Banzhaf.

For example, in a report on "a potential new strategy" to stop "women from traveling out of state to end their pregnancies," and how "men who disapprove of their partners' decisions" to have abortions in states where it is legal can stop them by  "filing their own civil lawsuits or by reporting the abortions to law enforcement," the Washington Post reports (https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2024/05/03/texas-abortion-investigations/) on one of many new anti-abortion legal tactics.

Such tactics might well be used by abortion opponents in Idaho, even where the pregnant woman meets the criteria for having a legal abortion, according to the what appears to be a Supreme Court opinion, he argues.

This type of law suit, by the way, can be brought not only by husbands or ex-partners, but also by anyone - including anti-abortion activists - who learn the details about an illegal abortion.

This is only the latest in a growing list of novel legal tactics being used to prevent abortions even in states where they are legal, or against women who plan to use abortion pills, says Banzhaf, who has carefully analyzed these various legal developments.

Law professor Banzhaf, in an exhaustive legal analysis, also explained how fetal personhood - which doesn't even require new laws, and grants any fetus the same legal rights and protections as any person - has been described as the "ultimate goal of the anti-abortion movement," fetal estate lawsuits (which have been brought for many years), and other ongoing novel legal actions are threatening abortion rights, even where abortions are legal.  SEE:
Banzhaf, How Fetal Personhood and Fetal Estate Lawsuits Threaten Abortion Rights (https://lawandcrime.com/opinion/how-fetal-personhood-and-...)

He also explains that even if the lawsuits and threats of criminal prosecutions are ultimately not successful, the risks - as well as the legal costs and other burdens of defending against them - are likely to deter many women, and those who might think about assisting a pregnant woman in any way, from terminating their pregnancies.

Banzhaf notes, for example, that a doctor who was sued for prescribing abortion pills in Arizona had her annual medical malpractice insurance rate more than double from $32,000 to $67,000.

http://banzhaf.net/  jbanzhaf3ATgmail.com  @profbanzhaf