Richmond, VA - Closing arguments in the trial to determine
the constitutionality of Virginia's so-called "partial-birth abortion"
law will be presented to U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne on
Thursday, January 14, 1999. The evidentiary phase of the trial was
conducted on August 18 and 19, 1998.
"Courts across the country have determined that 'partial-birth
abortion' laws are unconstitutional, measures that could eliminate a
woman's right to choose abortion altogether," said Simon Heller,
Director of Litigation for the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy, a
legal advocacy organization that represents the plaintiffs. CRLP has
challenged 14 "partial-birth abortion" laws across the
country.
19 STATES BLOCK SIMILAR LAW
Virginia is now the only state in the nation where courts, faced with a
constitutional challenge, have allowed a state's "partial-birth abortion"
law to take effect. "Partial-birth abortion" laws have been blocked or
severely limited in 19 states. Permanent injunctions have been issued in
12 states, including Iowa, Kentucky, Nebraska, and New Jersey, where the
statutory definition of "partial-birth abortion" is identical to that in
the Virginia law. Five states have appealed final decisions to U.S. Courts
of Appeal in the 3rd, 8th, 9th, and 11th circuits. A narrower ban on
certain methods of abortion was permanently enjoined in Ohio. The U.S.
Supreme Court denied a petition to hear that case in March, 1998.
Judge Payne issued a preliminary injunction against Virginia's
"partial-birth abortion" law on June 25, 1998. The Commonwealth of
Virginia filed an emergency appeal to Judge Michael Luttig of the Fourth
Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, who stayed the injunction on June 30.
DOCTORS AND CLINICS RAISE ISSUE Plaintiffs in Richmond
Medical Center v. Gilmore include Richmond Medical Center for Women,
William G. Fitzhugh, M.D., Hillcrest Clinic, Herbert C. Jones, Jr., M.D.,
Virginia League for Planned Parenthood, and Planned Parenthood of
Metropolitan DC, Inc. Simon Heller, Bonnie Scott Jones and Richmond-based
Karen Raschke of the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy, represent the
plaintiffs. Two Planned Parenthood affiliates are represented by lawyers
from Planned Parenthood Federation of America.