Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (File photo)
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced today that she' suing in Oakland Circuit Court to ensure that abortion remains legal in Michigan, and asked the state Supreme Court to rule on the case.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (File photo)
The lawsuit seeks to recognize the right to an abortion under the state constitution, similarly to what the U.S. Supreme Court did in Roe v. Wade which declared abortion to be a constitutional right, and to strike down the state’s 1931 abortion ban law.
The Supreme Court, which is considered to have its most right-wing makeup in decades, heard arguments on a Mississippi law banning abortions after 15 weeks in December. Depending on how the court rules in the case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which is expected by the end of the Court’s term in June, Roe v. Wade could be overturned.
If that happens, the 1931 Michigan law criminalizing abortions in all instances unless it is to protect the life of the pregnant person, will go into effect.
In an accompanying statement, Whitmer said:
“If Roe is overturned, abortion could become illegal in Michigan in nearly any circumstance — including in cases of rape and incest — and deprive Michigan women of the ability to make critical health care decisions for themselves. This is no longer theoretical: it is reality. That’s why I am filing a lawsuit and using my executive authority to urge the Michigan Supreme Court to immediately resolve whether Michigan’s state constitution protects the right to abortion.
“However we personally feel about abortion, a woman’s health, not politics, should drive important medical decisions. A woman must be able to make her own medical decisions with the advice of a healthcare professional she trusts – politicians shouldn’t make that decision for her.
"...No matter what happens to Roe, I am going to fight like hell and use all the tools I have as governor to ensure reproductive freedom is a right for all women in Michigan. If the U.S. Supreme Court refuses to protect the constitutional right to an abortion, the Michigan Supreme Court should step in. We must trust women — our family, neighbors, and friends — to make decisions that are best for them about their bodies and lives.”
There was no immediate reaction from other interested parties.
Defendants named in the case are prosecutors in the 13 Michigan counties that have abortion clinics, which include Wayne, Oakland, Washtenaw and Macomb.
