Roe V. Wade
(1973)
Facts
.Roe said that she was single and pregnant, and that she was unable to receive a legal abortion by a licensed physician because her life was not in danger by the her pregnancy and that she was unable to afford to travel to another jurisdiction to obtain a legal abortion.
.Plaintiffs in the lawsuit included Hallford, a doctor who faced criminal prosecution for violating the state abortion laws; and the Does, a married couple with no children, who sought an injunction against enforcement of the laws on the grounds that they were unconstitutional.
.The defendant was county District Attorney Wade (D).
Legal Issues Adressed
- Do abortion laws that criminalize all abortions, except those required to save the life of the mom, go against the Constitution of the United States?
- Does the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution protect the right to privacy, including the right to obtain an abortion?
- Are there any circumstances where a state may enact laws prohibiting abortion?
- Was the district court correct in denying injunctive relief?
Plantiff Arguments
McCorvey's attorneys changed the suit to a class action on behalf all pregnant women in the state of Texas, and were joined by an intervenor, Dr. James Hallford, who had been charged with performing illegal abortions.
.Central argument was that a fetus was not a person with rights under the United States Constitution.
.Keep abortion legal
Defendant Arguments
The initial argument advanced by Assistant District Attorney John Tolle was that Roe lacked standing to bring action because the Texas statutes in question were directed at the medical provider, not at the potential recipient of the abortion.
.Wade's primary argument was that the fetus was a person.
.Abortion was homicide.
.The State had an interest in forbidding.