NEW: Supreme Court agrees to rule on abortion restrictions, setting up contentious election year debate
Three years after striking down restrictions on Texas clinics and doctors that had created burdens for thousands of women, the justices agreed Friday to consider a similar Louisiana law in the term beginning Monday.
Abortion rights advocates had complained that the law was virtually identical to the one struck down in 2016. But that Texas decision required the vote of Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy, who retired last year and was replaced by Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Roberts dissented in that case, preferring to let the Texas restrictions stand.
The court last term upheld an Indiana law requiring the burial or cremation of fetal remains following an abortion. But it refused to consider that state's effort to ban abortions based on sex, race or disability. And in June, it refused to hear Alabama's effort to reinstate its ban against a particular second-term method of abortion.
Even with a 5-4 conservative majority, the court has not shown much interest in overturning Roe v. Wade. Roberts prefers a more incremental approach, and during his confirmation hearings last year, Kavanaugh referred to a series of Supreme Court rulings affirming the abortion right as"precedent on precedent."
For abortion opponents, Kavanaugh has been viewed as the crucial fifth conservative vote. He has praised former chief justice William Rehnquist's dissent from the Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion, and he dissented from his federal appeals court's 2017 decision allowing an undocumented teenager in government custody to get an abortion.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Apple CEO Cook opposes Trump, backs 'dreamer' immigrants in Supreme CourtApple Inc CEO Tim Cook on Wednesday filed a brief at the U.S. Supreme Court opposing President Donald Trump&39;s effort to end a program that protects from deportation hundreds of thousands of immigrants who were brought into the United States illegally as children. The brief was filed on behalf of
Read more »
Supreme Court to hear Louisiana abortion caseBREAKING: Supreme Court agrees to hear challenge to Louisiana law requiring doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. The case will be the first involving abortion for the court's new majority of justices.
Read more »
Tim Cook Signs Supreme Court Brief In Support Of DACA
Read more »
Apple’s Tim Cook urges Supreme Court to preserve DACAIn a friend-of-the-court brief filed Wednesday, top executives at Apple Inc. urged the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold DACA, the Obama-era law protecting the...
Read more »
Tim Cook Signs Supreme Court Brief In Support Of DACA
Read more »
Supreme Court gives lawyers 2 minutes with no interruptionsCNN News, delivered. Select from our newsletters below and enter your email to subscribe.
Read more »