A law from 1849 does not ban abortion in Wisconsin. That’s what the state Supreme Court decided Wednesday.
AILSA CHANG, HOST:
In Wisconsin today, the state Supreme Court struck down a ban on almost all abortions that was more than a century old. The Democratic attorney general in Wisconsin, Josh Kaul, had brought the case. Here he is reacting to the ruling.
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JOSH KAUL: Today’s ruling marks a major victory for reproductive freedom, following the uncertainty and harm to women’s health that have resulted from the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
CHANG: Sarah Lehr of Wisconsin Public Radio joins us now from Madison to talk through all of this. Hi, Sarah.
SARAH LEHR, BYLINE: Hello.
CHANG: OK, so tell us more about what the court decided today.
LEHR: The court ruled that a law passed before the Civil War is no longer in effect. That law banned all abortions, except those done to save a pregnant woman’s life. You mentioned Attorney General Kaul earlier. He brought this lawsuit just days after the Dobbs ruling because Wisconsin was in a legal gray area, and he was concerned about abortion providers being prosecuted under this long-dormant abortion ban. Today, the court’s liberal majority said laws passed more recently basically overwrote the 19th century ban. So that means abortion is legal here in Wisconsin until 20 weeks of pregnancy.
CHANG: OK, so what sort of reactions are you hearing, like, from people in the state who are against abortion rights?
LEHR: Yeah, Republicans and anti-abortion advocates have accused liberal justices of judicial activism. The majority leader in Wisconsin Senate, a Republican named Devin LeMahieu, was one of the critics.
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DEVIN LEMAHIEU: It appears that once again, the state Supreme Court liberals sort of went rogue and overturned legislative power.
LEHR: The court has had a liberal majority since mid-2023, so this outcome was expected by many. Just for some background, the last two elections for the state Supreme Court here have been the most expensive judicial races ever in U.S. history, and abortion rights were a big talking point in both of those elections.
CHANG: Yeah. Can you talk more about what abortion access is like in Wisconsin right now? Like, does this ruling substantively change anything?
LEHR: Well, advocates for abortion rights are celebrating this ruling because it does provide clarity. But in a sense, it also just preserves the status quo. When Dobbs came down three years ago, providers here stopped offering elective abortions. But in the fall of 2023, clinics once again were offering abortions here because of a lower court decision in the attorney general’s favor. Today’s decision affirms that lower court decision. It’s also worth noting that there’s other restrictions on abortion still in effect in Wisconsin. There’s a mandatory ultrasound law and a 24-hour waiting period.
CHANG: That is Wisconsin Public Radio’s Sarah Lehr. Thank you, Sarah.
LEHR: Thanks for having me.
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