Government
Judge declares Michigan late-term abortion law unconstitutional
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Oct. 17, 2005
A federal judge last month declared the Michigan law banning so-called "partial-birth" abortions unconstitutional, saying the law does not protect the health of pregnant women.
U.S. District Judge Denise Hood also ruled that the law's language was vague "and does not place the physicians on notice regarding what actions on their part will constitute a violation of the act."
The law, passed last year, was challenged by several family planning groups, including Northland Family Planning Clinic and Planned Parenthood Mid-Michigan Alliance. They argued that the law left many terms undefined. One example is a provision requiring a physician to wait until a woman is in "imminent" danger before performing dilation and extraction.
Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox's office was reviewing the decision "with the intent to appeal," said spokeswoman Allison Pierce.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2005/10/17/gvbf1017.htm.
