Government
High court won't revisit Roe v. Wade
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted March 14, 2005
The U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal last month to reopen Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 lawsuit that legalized abortion.
Norma McCorvey, the Texas woman who was identified as "Jane Roe" when her initial lawsuit went to trial, had asked the court to overturn its original ruling after changing her opinion on abortion. She said her decision was based on what is now known about a baby's development, the change in societal views on unwed mothers, and studies on the long-term effects of abortion on women.
Last fall, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled that the case should not be reopened, saying the issue is moot because the Texas law criminalizing abortion that was at the center of McCorvey's original lawsuit has long been repealed.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2005/03/14/gvbf0314.htm.
