Florida’s constitution does not guarantee the right to an abortion
FRANKFORT, Ky. (April 12, 2023) – Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced his office joined 19 states in filing an amicus brief before the Supreme Court of Florida in Planned Parenthood v. Florida. The brief supports the constitutionality of a Florida law that prohibits abortions after 15 weeks.
“The Dobbs decision returned the authority to determine abortion policy to elected state representatives,” said Attorney General Cameron. “Protecting life is a top priority for my office, and we joined this amicus brief to be a voice for the unborn.”
Last June, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade and restored the power to decide how to protect unborn life to states. Shortly before Dobbs, Florida passed a law making abortions illegal after 15 weeks. Recently, a state trial court in Florida ruled the 15-week law unconstitutional under Florida’s constitution.
In the brief, the attorneys general argue that a right to privacy under Florida’s constitution does not guarantee the right to an abortion. The coalition writes, “When a court imposes a right to abortion on the people based on a general right of privacy, that action lacks democratic legitimacy, ‘short-circuits the democratic process’ and takes away from the people matters that—until the people say otherwise—should remain within ‘the arena of public debate and legislative action.’”
The attorneys general have asked the Supreme Court of Florida to overturn the trial court’s decision and find the 15-week abortion prohibition constitutional.
Attorney General Cameron was joined by attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia in filing the brief.
To view a copy of the amicus brief, click here.
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