The United States Supreme Court heard arguments on November 8, 2006 in the case of Gonzales v. Carhart and Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood. Both of these cases involve the constitutional validity of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003. The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 describes the controversial abortion procedure as “a gruesome and inhumane procedure that is never medically necessary.” The method involves the partial extraction of a live fetus from the womb, then cutting or crushing the skull. Opponents of the law argue that late-term abortions are sometimes the safest option for women with certain medical conditions and that the procedure is rarely used.

The Court previously addressed and struck down a similar law in the case of Stenberg v. Carhart in 2000. In the Stenberg case, the Court determined that the key terms in a Nebraska ban on partial-birth abortion were “unconstitutionally vague” and lacked a “health” exception. The Supreme Court has previously stated, “[A] statute is unconstitutionally vague if it either: (1) fails to ‘give the person of ordinary intelligence a reasonable opportunity to know what is prohibited’; or (2) fails to ‘provide explicit standards for those who apply [the law].’” The law presently before the Court has included within it additional language, that in the hope of the drafters of it, eliminates any “vagueness” and although the law does not specifically provide a “health” exception, according to the language of the law, this method of abortion is not prohibited if it is “necessary to save the life of a mother whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness, or physical injury, including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself.” Opponents argue that the exception is too narrow.

From a purely legal perspective, these cases are significant because the ruling that the Court issues will give members within the legal community and members of the public at large an indication of the effect that the newest members of the Court will have on the overall issue of abortion. The issue of abortion has divided the country and the Supreme Court like no other issue. Now, nine of the country’s greatest legal scholars have a significant abortion issue squarely before them. The Court’s ruling, which should be rendered by the summer of 2007, will likely shape the legal landscape surrounding abortion for years to come.

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