PRO-LIFE COURT REVIEWS AND LEGISLATION[42]

Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood (2006)
The Supreme Court has agreed to take a case out of California concerning the constitutionality of the national ban on partial-birth abortion. This is the second case involving the ban on partial-birth abortion that the high court has agreed to hear. As you may recall, Congress approved a national ban on the procedure. The law was challenged in three separate cases in the federal court system in Nebraska, New York, and California. In all cases, the ban was declared unconstitutional. The high court first agreed to hear the case out of Nebraska (see below). The ACLJ, which has been involved in defending the national ban since its passage by Congress, is supporting the government's position defending the ban and is representing members of Congress in an amicus brief filed with the high court. Like the Nebraska case, the Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in CA case in the fall of 2006. The case is Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood, 05-1382.

Gonzales v. Carhart (2005)
The Supreme Court has agreed to take a case out of Nebraska concerning the constitutionality of the national ban on partial-birth abortion. As you may recall, Congress approved a national ban on the procedure. The law was challenged in three separate cases in the federal court system in Nebraska, New York, and California. In all cases, the ban was declared unconstitutional. The high court will hear the case out of Nebraska. The ACLJ, which has been involved in defending the national ban since its passage by Congress, is supporting the government's position defending the ban and is representing nearly 80 members of Congress and more than 320,000 Americans in an amicus brief filed with the high court. The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in the fall of 2006. The case is Gonzales v. Carhart, 05-380.

Operation Rescue v. National Organization for Women, et al. (2005)
On February 28, 2006, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of pro-life demonstrators and organizations bringing an end to a nearly 20-year-old legal marathon involving a federal racketeering statute used against pro-life demonstrators. The high court ruled that the actions of the pro-life demonstrators fell outside the scope of the federal Hobbs Act, and therefore the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute - a law designed to combat drug dealers and organized crime. In its decision, the high court ordered the federal appeals court to enter a ruling in favor of the pro-life demonstrators and organizations bringing an end to a case that lasted nearly two decades. The ACLJ represented Operation Rescue and served as Counsel of Record in the case.