Abortion ban rejected

The week's news at a glance.

San Francisco

A federal judge ruled this week that a law banning so-called partial-birth abortion was unconstitutional. The law, passed last year, prohibited a form of late-term abortion in which a living fetus is partially removed from the womb and its skull crushed. President Bush has called the procedure a “terrible form of violence” against “children who are inches from birth.” But Judge Phyllis Hamilton, a Clinton appointee, ruled that “the act poses an undue burden on a woman’s right to choose an abortion.” She also said in a 120-page ruling that such abortions, contrary to a congressional finding, might sometimes be necessary to protect a woman’s health. Two other federal judges are considering separate challenges to the law, and the matter is expected to wind up before the Supreme Court.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us