The Supreme Court declined to take up several abortion cases, just days after striking down a Louisiana law in the first major abortion decision since President Trump’s two appointees joined the bench
But the justices, citing their decision in the Louisiana case, also sent back to a lower federal court two challenges to two Indiana laws — one signed in 2016 by then-Gov. Mike Pence, that required an ultrasound and an 18-hour waiting period before an abortion and another that requires minors to obtain parental consent before the procedure.
"The liberal justices said courts have to balance burdens versus benefits when ruling on abortion laws," explained Mary Ziegler, a law professor at Florida State University. "Roberts said he didn’t agree, that a law could be completely pointless, but as long as it’s not burdensome it can be constitutional. That departs significantly from the precedent inand means courts going forward could be more likely to side with the government.
The Louisiana case dealt with another issue — legal standing for abortion providers, who regularly lead challenges to state restrictions on the procedure. Roberts agreed with the court's four liberal justices to find the clinics had standing, but his four conservative colleagues said they would have denied standing, effectively invalidating the lawsuit and potentially dozens like it nationwide.
The justices spent an unusually long time deciding whether to take up the Indiana law. In May 2019, they issued a decision addressingwithout first holding oral arguments. The court upheld a requirement for fetal remains from abortions to be buried or cremated rather than disposed of as medical waste, but it blocked another provision that would have banned abortions based on a fetus' sex, race or disability.
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