Right-leaning Supremes may deep-6 Roe v. Wade
Abortion rights, guns and religion — the Supreme Court is taking on some of the most controversial issues of the day when it begins its new term on Monday.
Attracting the public spotlight on its docket is a case from Mississippi that could challenge the landmark Roe v. Wade decision of 1973 protecting a woman’s right to abortion.
Lower courts have blocked a Mississippi law banning most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, finding the measure exceeded states’ rights to regulate abortion.
But Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch, a Republican, is trying to revive a longstanding conservative argument that the nation’s highest court exceeded its authority in its Roe v. Wade ruling.
Before breaking for the summer, the court ruled 5-4 in favor of a Texas law banning most abortions in the Lone Star State but did so on a technicality.
When it hears arguments in the Mississippi case starting Dec. 1, the high court could upend abortion rights nationwide.
Supporters of reproductive rights held marches across the country on Saturday, protesting a slew of new restrictions that state legislatures have passed since President Biden took office.
Other items on the court’s agenda could be no less explosive. With conservatives controlling the panel (photo) by a 6-3 majority, court watchers will be following how strongly their ideology informs their rulings.
In November, the court will hear a case challenging New York’s tough restrictions on carrying guns outside the home.
The case involves a lower court ruling that upheld the state’s law limiting who has a right to carry a gun in public.
Just a handful of states have similar laws on the books, but the case has major implications for Second Amendment rights.
The last argument of the year on the court’s calendar deals with religious rights. The court will hear arguments over a Maine law that bars religious schools from a state tuition program.