Court ruling sought on NM abortion law (Filing says legislative repeal of 1969 law leaves 1963 law in place)

Hobbs News-Sun ^ | July 7, 2022 | Andy Brosig

[CedarDave]

A petition filed last week in the Fifth Judicial District for Chaves County in Roswell calls for a return to a 1963 law outlawing abortion.

State Sen. David Gallegos, R-Eunice, Larry Marker of Roswell, who’s recently filed as a write-in candidate for the office of State Land Commissioner, and Ethel Maharg of Albuquerque, executive director of the group New Mexico Right to Life and recent Republican gubernatorial candidate, named Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Attorney General Hector Balderas as defendants in the petition.

The three said when the state legislature repealed a 1969 law that banned abortion in New Mexico and failed to adopt a new law, it left a void and opened the state to become “the abortion capital off the world,” Gallegos told the News-Sun.

The 1969 law permitted abortions only to protect the health of the mother, if the child “probably will have a great physical or mental defect,” or if pregnancy was the result of rape or incest. The petitioners said the 1963 law has precedence since the repeal only permits abortion “to preserve the life of the woman or to prevent serious and permanent bodily injury.”

Filed June 22, the petitioners requested a declaratory judgement from the court, arguing “statutory authority does not currently exist that allows for or legalizes abortion procedures within the borders of the State of New Mexico.”

Likewise, Marker and Gallegos said, the lack of a statute codifying abortion regulation makes the situation a “free-for-all,” Marker said.

“We don’t have any laws on the books relating to abortion,” Marker said. “What do we do? Do we just cut everybody loose with unlimited access to abortion in the State of New Mexico?

“I hope we at least can get some sanity,” he said. “We can’t have unlimited abortion for any reason you want. (New Mexico) is going to go from the abortion capital of the nation to really the abortion capital of the world.”

At the core of the current issue is that void, Gallegos said. When the U.S. Supreme Court last month issued its ruling, effectively removing federal medical oversight of abortion and turning the issue back to states to decide, there wasn’t a law on the books in New Mexico to guide those decisions here.

“When they did that and we don’t have a statute on the books, the state doesn’t have anything to fall back on except the 1963 version (of the law),” Gallegos said. “It’s still there. (The legislature) didn’t repeal it, they just repealed the 1969” law.

[CedarDave]

More text at the link, entire story is 1200 words.

As all branches of state government in New Mexico are controlled by Democrats, mostly far left progressives, there is little likelihood that this will go anywhere at present. However, if enough voters become aware that there may be an option instead of unrestricted abortion as at present, they may vote some of those radicals out of office starting with the governor.

[CedarDave]

NM list PING!

I may not PING for all New Mexico articles. To see New Mexico articles by topic click here: New Mexico Topics

To see NM articles by keyword, click here: New Mexico Keyword

To see the NM Message Page, click here: New Mexico Messages

(The NM list is available on my FR homepage for FR member use; its use in the News Forum should not be for trivial or inconsequential posts. Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from the list.)
(For ABQ Journal articles requiring a subscription, you are allowed a number of free article views.)

[CedarDave]

Fighting back against the politician baby killers here in New Mexico.

[OneVike]

Isn’t New Mexico mostly Hispanic?

If so, the Republican could make this a huge issue in the elections and take the state away from the Republicans.

In almost everyplace across the country, especially in SouthWestern States, Hispanics are the largest demographic which the voters are overwhelmingly are pro-life.

If Republicans play it right, they can flip the whole state like, the 84%-Hispanic district in South Texas was by electing Republican Mayra Flores.

[OneVike]

I meant away from Democrats

[CedarDave]

Isn’t New Mexico mostly Hispanic?

Mostly Hispanic and Native American. Anglo's are a minority. However, many Hispanics are HINO's, otherwise Anglo's with social attitudes like progressive Dems.