Late-Term Abortion Bans Upheld in Court

A federal appeals court in Chicago has upheld Illinois and Wisconsin laws banning certain late-term abortions, but opponents of the laws said the issue is still far from a legal resolution. The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois said it would appeal the decision, seeking a reconsideration of the order and an injunction preventing the two laws from being enforced while the appeals process is underway. The two state laws are similar in intent and not unlike those passed in about 30 other states. They would outlaw what critics of the procedure refer to as “partial-birth” abortions, also called dilation and extraction, in which the fetus is allowed to partially emerge, a tube is inserted into its skull and the contents drained. Doctors who perform such procedures could face stiff criminal penalties under many of the laws banning the procedure.