Court: abortion law unconstitutional

MSNBC.com ^ | 1/31/2006 | AP

[Jhohanna]

SAN FRANCISCO - An appeals court ruled Tuesday that the federal law banning 'partial-birth' abortion is unconstitutional, saying the measure is vague and lacks an exception for cases in which a woman’s health is at stake.

[Jhohanna]

I *hate* the 9th Court. Of course they would rule this unconstitutional. But how can it be?

[Appalled but Not Surprised]

This is the 9th Circus. They'd say that the declaration of independence was unconstitutional if a Republican said that it wasn't.

[50sDad]

Bring it on, 9th Circus. There's at least two new sheriffs in DC.

[joebuck]

Sounds to me like a nice test case for for our new Supreme Court. Just in time.

[Old_Mil]

Excellent. We will now get to see what the new Supreme court is made of.

[RAY]

On it is - to the Supreme Court!

[The Old Hoosier]

You know where this is going?

PAGING JUSTICE ALITO!!!

[massgopguy]

The most overturned court ever.

[mkjessup]

I'm looking forward to some major smackdowns on the 9th Circus from the reinvigorated, newly conservative SCOTUS.

[Timedrifter]

Hopefully the 9th circuit will retain the title of being the most overturned court in the federal system. We will know where Alito stands sooner rather than later.

[Shalom Israel]

How's this for an argument: being forced to feed your children for 18 years amounts to forced labor, which is of course slavery. Therefore, any law preventing a parent from killing his underage chlldren is unconstitutional, and also violates the emancipation proclamation.

Let's run that baby through the 9th circuit, and see what they come up with.

[linda_22003]

Before you all grab your flaming torches like the villagers in "Frankenstein" remember this has also been blocked by courts as diverse as New York and Nebraska; it's not just this one court. The Supremes don't tend to take cases that several lower courts have agreed with each other about.

[TChris]

The 9^th Circus continues to dig themselves deeper into the pit of judicial contempt which will define them in the history books.

[John Jorsett]

I'm looking forward to some major smackdowns on the 9th Circus from the reinvigorated, newly conservative SCOTUS.

I don't think it'll happen in the abortion issues yet. Given previous votes, I think the court still tilts 5-4 pro-abortion even after Alito and Roberts.

[msnimje]

It is IMPOSSIBLE that a woman's health can be improved by a partial birth abortion -IMPOSSIBLE!!

The procedure is to induce labor, stop the labor with some part of the child still inside the woman and then KILL THE BABY. This actually TAKES MORE TIME than simply inducing labor and delivering the baby.

If they were really concerned about the mother's "Health" why take up precious time to kill the precious baby?

Why not skip the step that kills the baby?

[ark_girl]

The question is if we can get another justice in before this makes it to the SCOTUS. That would GREAT.

[jwalsh07]

Scalia, Kennedy, Thomas, Roberts, Alito.

Yup, that's 5.

9th overturned again.

[lilylangtree]

Yep, this is the 9th Circuit. This district needs broken up really bad.

[chimera]

...lacks an exception for cases in which a woman’s health is at stake.

WTF? What possible kind of health issues could there be in a case where the child has been 95% delivered with maybe it's foot left in the birth canal, and then someone comes along and sucks it's brains out? Sounds to me like the only health issues at stake in PBA are those of the child.

It just reinforces my opinion that the legal system in this country (or maybe it's just this particular court, but there have been other cases elsewhere that make me wonder) is being run by a bunch of clueless idiots who can't think through a problem, but only worship legal process and stare decisis (and abortion) as their God. My God, for a gruesome practice like PBA, where the child has been delivered for all practical purposes, there can't be any health benefits to the mother that would be gained from slaughtering the child.

[Vicomte13]

Kennedy?

I'm not so sure.
Kennedy's pretty wobbly.

4-4, with 1 swing vote, is now where things stand.