- Florida's second attempt at requiring parental involvement for minors obtaining abortions was permanently struck down when state court Judge Terry P. Lewis today found the state's parental notice law unconstitutional. The decision is on appeal to the intermediate state court of appeals.
"Today's decision re-affirms that singling out young women seeking abortions by depriving them of access to confidential health care violates the Florida Constitution and imposes needless risks on their health. We are hopeful that, in light of Judge Lewis's decision, based directly on binding Florida Supreme Court precedent, Governor Bush and the Florida Legislature will start taking seriously their oath to uphold the Florida Constitution and stop meddling in the private medical decisions of Florida women," said Simon Heller, Director of Litigation for the Center for Reproductive Rights, a legal advocacy organization that represents the plaintiffs.
Today's ruling comes after a state court trial last December that included at least six witnesses testifying on the negative effects of parental involvement laws. Critical to Judge Lewis's decision was the explicit privacy clause in Florida's constitution, which allows young women the same right to privacy as adult women.
"This measure is part of a cruel anti-abortion agenda that has nothing to do with young women, family communication, or with compassion for people in need, and everything to do with forcing teens to carry pregnancies to term," said Charlene Carres, the Tallahassee attorney who is co-counsel in this case and was lead counsel in the 1989 challenge to the parental consent law.
The parental notice law has been blocked since July, 1999. Under the law, physicians were required to notify one of the parents or a legal guardian of any young woman seeking an abortion at least 48 hours prior to the procedure. Failure to do so would cause doctors to face disciplinary procedures, including loss of their license to practice medicine.
Florida is the only state in the South without restrictions against a young woman's right to abortion. Rulings similar to Florida's have been issued in Alaska, California, and Montana, as judges have recognized arguments supporting parental notice laws are unpersuasive and that they fail to serve any state purpose. Forty-two states have adopted parental involvement laws, but only 31 are enforcing them.
Plaintiffs in North Florida Women's Health & Counseling Services, Inc v. State of Florida include 12 abortion providers and clinics, as well as women's rights groups from across Florida. They are represented by Bebe Anderson and Julie Rikelman of the Center for Reproductive Rights, local cooperating attorney Charlene Carres, and Dara Klassel of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
