Judge Rules U.S. Law Banning “Gruesome” Partial Birth Abortion Unconstitutional

NEW YORK, August 26, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Federal District Judge Richard Casey in New York today ruled that the federal government cannot enforce the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act because the law conflicts with an earlier 5-4 Supreme Court ruling in favor of partial-birth abortion. Casey said the law failed to include an exception to protect the mother’s health as required by the Supreme Court decision.  Despite his ruling, Judge Casey also said, “The Court finds that the testimony at trial and before Congress establishes that D&X [partial-birth abortion] is a gruesome, brutal, barbaric, and uncivilized medical procedure.”  Casey also referred to “credible evidence that [such] abortions subject fetuses to severe pain.” He continued, “Notwithstanding this evidence, some of Plaintiffs’ experts testified that fetal pain does not concern them, and that some do not convey to their patients that their fetuses may undergo severe pain during a D&X [partial-birth abortion].”  Douglas Johnson, legislative director for the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC), commented: “Judge Casey said his ruling was dictated by a 5 to 4 Supreme Court ruling in 2000, which held that Roe v. Wade protects partial-birth abortion.  Future appointments to the Supreme Court will determine whether it remains legal to mostly deliver living premature infants and painfully puncture their skulls.  President Bush is determined to ban partial-birth abortion, but John Kerry voted against the ban and has vowed that he will appoint only justices who agree with him.”  Attorney General John Ashcroft has indicated he is preparing to appeal Judge Casey’s decision to the Supreme Court.  The National Right to Life Committee maintains the most comprehensive collection of documentation on partial-birth abortion available anywhere on the Internet, at https://www.nrlc.org/abortion/pba/index.html