◆ SpookStack

” ABORT The ‘landmark decision handed down by the ‘ California Supreme Court in September, 1969 declaring California's over 100-year old abortion laws unconstitutional (People vse. ‘Dr. Leon P. Belous) established the vital legal precedent for swift filing of. suits dn other states. Roy lucas, Director of the James Madison Constitutional Law In- stitute and a member of NARAL's board, spearheaded a stellar group of ACLU attor- neys in New York. In a joint action to be heard before a three-judge federal court, _ _ several prominent physicians, nurses, in~ dividual married and unmarried women, min- dsters, social workers and psychologists filed a complaint against the Attorney | ‘General of New York State, the District Attorneys of New York, Bronx and Kings Counties, two major New York hospitals and the hospital sbortion committees of same. This case will be argued in the near fut~ pre. A decision can take up to nine months and whether we prevail or not, the case will go to the U.S. Appeals Court and subse- quently to the U.S. Supreme Court for ree | wiew and final. ruling. November, 1969, shortly after the New York suit was filed, District Judge Qerbard A. Gesell, washington, D.C., ruled in Peo- ple vs. Dr. Milan Vuitch that the abortion | Jaws of the District of Columbia were un- constitutional and invalid in line with the _ Belous precedent. Judge Gesell requested swift u.S, Supreme Court review of his rul- ing which leaves the District of Columbia without criminal sanctions against the per- Toning of abortions by a licensed physi- BNie Events moved swiftly. The California 1967 Therapeutic Abortion "reform" Act was successfully challenged and invalidated. Mast, Santa Ana, California, dismissed a- bortion charges against Dr. R. C. Robb of ' Dana Point, California, Judge Mast ruled that a woman has the constitutional right not to bear children, and held the 1967 Therapeutic Abortion Act unconstitutional. Orange County District Attorney Cecil Hicks plans to appeal the case. The Belous case was filed in 1965, prior to enactment of the peutic Abortion Act, and therefore Dr. Belous was not charged under this law. However, the California Supreme Court in handing down its opinion in Sept. 1969 used language indicating that the 1967 _ de alert to ION LAW “ePKAL GATHERS SPEED Act would prove {nvalid and unconstditution- al under proper court challenge. alt is this challenge which has now been success- Pally made.) Unless the California Su- Court should decide to review its own recent findings, it is likely Calif- ornia will shortly be in the sam position Washington, D.C, is enjoying pending final ruling by the U.S. Suprems Court. uther cases are stockpiling rapidly. In Renton, Washington, Dr. A. Frans Koane has directiy informed Governor Dan Evans of his decision to openly do a specified number of abortions in his office each week in a direct challenge to the consti- tuvionality of Washington abortion laws. This case is being prepared by his attor- ney, David Hood of Seattle, for presenta- tion to a federal court. More than four hundred women have filed | @ joint action in New York Federal Court, demanding their rights to proper abortion care. Some have signed effidavits testi- fying to their own dliegal abortions, this leading to possible prosecution of them under existing laws. Another similax group of women plan a joint suit in San Francisa Plans are going forward in California to place the repeal of abortion laws on the 1970 ballot through an initiative, There are doubtless other actions, not reported - here, but equally vital to our movenent for repeal. NARAL 4s working towards immediate oper — ing of a clinic in Washington, Dc This clinic will be staffed by certified ob- 1g and nurses, and will operate on an out-patient basis, Services will be of- fered at minimal or no charge to women unable to pay. The direct aim is to demon- strate clearly that hospitalization is not required in early terminations of preg- nancy wnder normal conditions of health of the patient. With the foreseeable repeal of criminal sanctions against abortion, all NOW, NARAL and other interested repeal groups should % rewriting of state abor- tion laws in the guise of “protective” ~~ laws requiring abortion to be an accred- ited hospital procedure. ‘Yana Clarke Phelan is oy ‘NATIONAL cHareman —west |