Decision of the Court

Though the argument of the case Roe vs. Wade which was used as precedent for this case, which the ruling for that case was somewhat different, the court made a 5-4 ruling to ban partial –birth abortion.

In the Roe vs. Wade case, it dealt with a young woman wanting the right to terminate a pregnancy under the advice and supervision of her doctor.

The Court held that a woman's right to an abortion fell within the right to privacy (recognized in Griswold v. Connecticut) protected by the Fourteenth Amendment. The decision gave a woman total autonomy over the pregnancy during the first trimester and defined different levels of state interest for the second and third trimesters.
(The Oyez Project, Roe v. Wade , 410 U.S. 113 (1973) available at: (http://oyez.org/cases/1970-1979/1971/1971_70_18)

Meanwhile, abortion is still legal. Certain types of abortions, that is. There is D&X, which is dilation and extraction. In this method the doctor uses forceps to extract the fetus from the mother. The other legal procedure is D&E, dilation and evacuation; this is a more evasive method.

In the court’s decision, it stated that it was never medically necessary for a woman to have this partial-birth procedure to ensure the mother’s health. It was however a very cruel way to end life. Some stated that the decision made by the supreme court was vague because it raised the question on who could perform this procedure, and under what circumstances.

Below, taken from Cornell University’s website, is a brief description on the court’s decision and the argument raised from it:

The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 does not include an exception for situations that endanger the health of the woman. Pursuant to Casey and Stenberg, an abortion regulation is unconstitutional when it fails to include such a provision if the regulated procedure may occasionally be necessary “to preserve a woman’s life or health.” In the wake of Stenberg, however, Congress concluded that the partial-birth abortion procedure would never be so required. Congress’s finding notwithstanding, a number of circuit courts have found the Ban unconstitutional on its face because of the lack of a health exception or otherwise. Thus, the Court’s decision will not only impact the future of abortion regulation, but also resolve the conflict between Congress and the courts.
(http://topics.law.cornell.edu/supct/cert/05-1382)