Arizona abortion law from 1864 reinstated

An Arizona Superior Court judge lifted a 50-year-old injunction on a state abortion law in light of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The court’s ruling reinstates an abortion ban passed in 1864 and will allow prosecutors to pursue charges against anyone who helps provide an abortion in the state.

The law was ruled unconstitutional in 1973 because the court said it needed to align with Roe. Now, Judge Kellie Johnson wrote that because the legal basis for the judgment has been overruled in Dobbs, it must be vacated entirely.

The Arizona law makes it illegal to provide both medical and surgical abortions, unless it is necessary to save the woman’s life. It is punishable by two to five years in state prison.

“We applaud the court for upholding the will of the legislature and providing clarity and uniformity on this important issue. I have and will continue to protect the most vulnerable Arizonans,” Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich said in a statement.

But Planned Parenthood said it won’t stop fighting until the ban is repealed.

“We know that today’s ruling does not reflect the will of the people, as Arizonans are overwhelmingly in favor of abortion access. Instead, it is the result of extremist Attorney General Brnovich and other anti-abortion elected officials who are on a mission to strip Arizonans from their right to live under a rule of law that respects our bodily autonomy and reproductive decisions,” Brittany Fonteno, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Arizona, said in a statement.

A separate 15 week abortion ban took effect in Arizona Saturday. Planned Parenthood said in a release, “This decision to lift the injunction on the previously enjoined abortion ban, without clarifying how Arizona’s other existing laws interact with it, has created chaos and confusion.”

While new lawsuits are expected, this decision could have a much more immediate impact on the upcoming midterm elections Nov. 8. Arizona voters will choose between Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, D, and former TV News Anchor Kari Lake, R, in the governor’s race and Sen. Mark Kelly, D, who is being challenged by businessman Blake Masters, R, for a six year term in the United States Senate.

A July poll from Ohio Predictive Insights found 89% of Arizonans believe abortion should be legal in at least some cases, and 42% said it should be legal in all circumstances. According to the poll, 47% also said they are more likely to vote after learning of the Dobbs decision.