Wyoming Supreme Court says 'ending fetal life' is women's 'healthcare'

The Wyoming Supreme Court has struck down the state's law protecting virtually all preborn children from abortion, as well as a law banning abortion pills.

Key Takeaways:

• In 2023, after Roe v. Wade was overturned, Wyoming passed laws protecting preborn children from abortion and banning abortion pills from being used in the state.

• This spawned a series of legal battles, with injunctions being placed on the latter law almost immediately.

• The Wyoming Supreme Court has now ruled that both laws are unconstitutional.

The Backstory:

In March of 2023, a law protecting preborn children from abortion and one banning abortion pills in the state of Wyoming were passed. “I have acted without bias and after extensive prayer, to allow these bills to become law,” Governor Mark Gordon wrote in a letter to Wyoming’s secretary of state.

Both laws came under legal scrutiny almost immediately; a judge blocked the law protecting preborn children from abortion within days, with another judge placing an injunction against the abortion pill ban as well.

The bills never were able to take effect because legal wrangling continued to play out in the courts for nearly three years.

The Details:

The Wyoming Supreme Court has now officially blocked both laws, claiming they are unconstitutional because they violate a woman’s right to make her own "health care choices." Though the state correctly argued that abortion is not health care, the Supreme Court justices disagreed.

“Although a woman’s decision to have an abortion ends the fetal life, the decision is, nevertheless, one she makes concerning her own health care,” Wyoming Chief Justice Lynne Boomgaarden wrote.

WGME 13 noted (emphasis added):

Wellspring Health Access in Casper, Wyoming, argued along with the abortion access advocacy group Chelsea’s Fund and four women that the laws violated a state constitutional amendment. They argued that the amendment ensures that competent adults have the right to make their own health care decisions.

The justices recognized that the amendment wasn’t written to apply to abortion but said it’s not their job to “add words” to the state constitution.

“But lawmakers could ask Wyoming voters to consider a constitutional amendment that would more clearly address this issue,” the justices wrote.

Wellspring's president is Julie Burkhart, the "owner of multiple abortion facilities who was mentored by late-term abortionist George Tiller" who opened the Trust Women Foundation after Tiller was assassinated. Several of Burkhart's facilities have a lengthy history of injuring abortion patients.

Gov. Gordon expressed his disappointment with the ruling in a statement:

"This ruling is profoundly unfortunate and sadly only serves to prolong the ultimate and proper resolution of this issue.

This ruling may settle, for now, a legal question, but it does not settle the moral one, nor does it reflect where many Wyoming citizens stand, including myself. It is time for this issue to go before the people for a vote, and I believe it should go before them this fall.

A constitutional amendment taken to the people of Wyoming would trump any and all judicial decisions. I call on the legislature to pass and place a clear constitutional amendment on my desk during the upcoming Budget Session.

I remain committed to the mission of saving our unborn. Every year that we delay the proper resolution of this issue results in more deaths of unborn children. This is a dilemma of enormous moral and social consequence."

The Bottom Line:

Abortion, as attorneys for Wyoming pointed out, is not health care.

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Health care does not intentionally end the life of a human being, and the intentional, targeted taking of an innocent human life cannot possibly be the legitimate right of another human being.