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South Carolina Supreme Court Reverses Stance on Abortion, Upholds Ban on Most Procedures After Six Weeks of Pregnancy

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Key takeaways:

  • The South Carolina Supreme Court has reversed its stance on abortion, upholding a law that bans most such procedures after about six weeks of pregnancy.
  • The decision has been met with criticism from abortion rights advocates, who argue that the law is unconstitutional and violates a woman’s right to privacy.
  • The ruling is the latest in a series of decisions by state legislatures across the U.S. South to limit access to abortion, and is likely to be challenged in the courts.

The South Carolina Supreme Court has reversed its stance on abortion, upholding a law that bans most such procedures after about six weeks of pregnancy. This decision comes after Republican state lawmakers replaced the lone female on the court, Justice Kaye Hearn, who reached the state’s mandatory retirement age.

Writing for the new majority, Justice John Kittredge acknowledged that the 2023 law infringes on “a woman’s right of privacy and bodily autonomy,” but said the state legislature reasonably determined this time around that those interests don’t outweigh “the interest of the unborn child to live.”

The 4-1 ruling departs from the court’s own decision months earlier striking down a similar ban that the Republican-led legislature passed in 2021. The decision has been met with criticism from abortion rights advocates, who argue that the law is unconstitutional and violates a woman’s right to privacy.

The ruling is the latest in a series of decisions by state legislatures across the U.S. South to limit access to abortion. The Supreme Court’s decision is likely to be challenged in the courts, and could potentially be overturned if it is found to violate the constitutional right to privacy.

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