A Case That Changed History

A Case That Changed History

In 2018, the state of Mississippi passed a law called the Gestational Age Act. This law banned most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

Jackson Women's Health Organization, the only abortion clinic in Mississippi at the time, challenged the law because it believed the restriction violated constitutional protections that were established by Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood.

There were ongoing disputes among the lower courts over the correct decision to make, so the case eventually reached the US Supreme Court.

The hearings began in 2021. The Supreme Court heard Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health to decide whether Mississippi could prohibit abortions or whether the Constitution protects the right.

With all the back and forth between judges, this process took nearly 8 months to complete!

On June 24, 2022, the Court ruled that the Constitution does not provide a right to abortion, upholding Mississippi's 15-week law and overturning Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood.

The decision returned the power to the individual states, meaning each state has control over abortion and can create its own laws to fit its needs.

This decision was a major turning point because abortion regulations began to change all throughout the United States.

This decision also changed 50 years of history because it ended the federal constitutional right to abortion, which had been a part of the United States for decades, causing some controversy.