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Abortion in America: The legal history
This appeared in The Millennial Source
Over four decades after a landmark Supreme Court case legalized abortion in the United States, the controversial topic is likely to be a central issue in the 2020 presidential election. This hotly contested issue is partially at the core of a major political divide in the US
With multiple states passing restrictions on abortions and one case heading for the Supreme Court, many are wondering if Roe v. Wade could be overturned, and what that would mean for legal abortion in the country.
Adopted in 1961, five articles of the Texas Penal Code explicitly outlined the abortion restrictions in the state. Four articles — 1191–1194 — set forth the punishments for procuring an abortion, including prison time. Article 1196, however, allowed an exception for “the purpose of saving the life of the mother.”
In 1969, a woman named Norma McCorvey was pregnant and sought an abortion in Dallas, Texas. It was her third time being pregnant. A first child, a daughter, was raised by Norma’s mother, while her second child, a son, was given up for adoption. Texas law prevented her from getting the abortion, so at five months into her third pregnancy, she sought legal counsel.
