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'''Doe v. Bolton''', 410 U.S. 179 (1973), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court overturning the abortion law of Georgia. The Supreme Court's decision was released on January 22, 1973, the same day as the decision in the more well-known case of ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973).

Contents

History of case during the 1970s

Broad definition of health

Litigation 30 years later

Footnotes

See also

External links

History of case during the 1970s

The Georgia law in question permitted abortion only in cases of rape, severe fetal deformity, or the possibility of severe or fatal injury to the mother. Other restrictions included the requirement that the procedure be approved in writing by three physicians and by a special committee of the staff of the hospital where the abortion was to be performed. In addition, only Georgia residents could receive abortions under this statutory scheme: non-residents could not have an abortion in Georgia under any circumstances.
The plaintiff, a pregnant woman who was given the pseudonym "Mary Doe" in court papers to protect her identity, sued Arthur K. Bolton, then the Attorney General of Georgia, as the official responsible for enforcing the law. The anonymous plaintiff has since been identified as Sandra Cano, a 22-year-old mother of three who was nine weeks pregnant at the time the lawsuit was filed. Cano describes herself as pro-life and claims her attorney, Margie Pitts Hames, lied to her in order to have a plaintiff.^[1]
A three-judge panel of the United States district court declared the conditional restrictions portion of the law unconstitutional, but upheld the medical approval and residency requirements, and refused to issue an injunction against enforcement of the law. The plaintiff appealed to the Supreme Court under a statute, since repealed, permitting bypass of the circuit appeals court.
The oral arguments and re-arguments followed the same schedule as those in ''Roe''. Atlanta attorney Hames represented Doe at the hearings, while Georgia assistant attorney general Dorothy Toth Beasley represented Bolton.
The same 7-2 majority (Justices White and Rehnquist dissenting) that struck down a Texas abortion law in ''Roe v. Wade'', invalidated most of the remaining restrictions of the Georgia abortion law, including the medical approval and residency requirements. Together, ''Doe'' and ''Roe'' recognized abortion as a constitutional right and by implication overturned most laws against abortion in other US states.

Broad definition of health

The Court's opinion in ''Doe v. Bolton'' stated that a woman may obtain an abortion after viability, if necessary to protect her "health." The Court defined "health" broadly:
This determination that abortion will be available all the way up until birth, for a wide variety of reasons, has proven to be controversial — "at least as controversial as its holding respecting the period prior to viability."^[2]

Litigation 30 years later

In 2003, Sandra Cano filed a motion to re-open the case.^[3] The district court denied her motion, and she appealed. When the appeals court also denied her motion,^[4] she requested review by the United States Supreme Court. However, the Supreme Court declined to hear Sandra Cano's suit to overturn the ruling.^[5]

Footnotes

1. White, Gayle. "Roe v. Wade Role Just a Page in Rocky Life Story", ''The Atlanta Journal and Constitution'' (2003-01-22).
2. Ely, John Hart."The Wages of Crying Wolf: A Comment on Roe v. Wade", ''The Yale Law Journal'', Vol. 82, pages 920-949 (1973).
3. “'Mary Doe' of Doe v. Bolton Files Motion To Overturn Companion Case to Roe v. Wade”, ''Kaiser Daily Reproductive Health Report'', (2003-08-27).
4. ''Cano v. Baker'', 435 F.3d 1337 (11th Cir. 2006).
5. Mears, Bill. "Court won't rethink 'Mary Doe' abortion case", ''CNN'' (2006-10-10).

See also

★ Roe v. Wade

★ Sex-related court cases''

★ Canadian Supreme Court case of R. v. Morgentaler finding Canada's abortion law unconstitutional

★ German Federal Constitutional Court abortion decision

External links

★ Text of the decision from Findlaw

★ Doe v. Bolton, 410 U.S. 179 (1973) from LII-Cornell Law School

★ United States Senate Committee of the Judiciary Testimony of Sandra Cano