State abortion laws are coming back into effect. In eight states, abortion bans which had been nullified by Roe have been restored by the 6-3 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. Of these eight state bans, six of them are likely to be enforced, including in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and West Virginia.
Meanwhile, abortions in Texas will become felony offenses punishable by up to life imprisonment in 30 days thanks to legislation passed last year which will take effect as a result of the Roe decision being overturned. Twelve states in addition to Texas have trigger legislation designed to take effect when Roe is overturned which will come into force either immediately or after a short period of time thanks to the Dobbs ruling.
State officials are taking differing approaches to these dormant and trigger laws. Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt issued a statement less than 10 minutes after the Dobbs opinion was released announcing that trigger legislation restricting abortions would go into effect, making Missouri the first state in the union to enforce its trigger law. Missouri’s law bans “almost all abortions in the state.” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton similarly declared that the trigger law would go into effect and that he looked forward to “defending the pro-life laws of Texas and the lives of all unborn children moving forward.”
Conversely, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul stated that he would not enforce Wisconsin’s ban. Despite Kaul’s deliberate dereliction of his duty, local Wisconsin law enforcement have been enabled to enforce the law, which was cemented after Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ failed in his attempt to repeal the statute.
With the dawn of the Post-Roe era, pro-life states are making strides to reassert their legal authority to end the slaughter of the unborn, which has been rightfully restored thanks to Dobbs.
