Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade, Ending Constitutional Right to Abortion

The Supreme Court on Friday overturned Roe v. Wade, ruling that Americans no longer have a constitutional right to abortion. The watershed decision rolled back reproductive rights in place in the United States—and considered by many to be the law of the land—since 1973.

A 6-3 majority of the justices ruled that the right to end a pregnancy was not found in the text of the Constitution, nor was it found in the nation's history. Associate Justice Samuel Alito wrote the opinion. 

"Roe was egregiously wrong from the start," Alito wrote.

Alito rejected Roe v. Wade’s logic as well as Planned Parenthood v. Casey, a 1992 decision that maintained the right established by Roe v. Wade. 

"Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences. And far from bringing about a national settlement of the abortion issue, Roe and Casey have enflamed debate and deepened division," Alito wrote. 

The decision gives states the power of determining abortion rights, which is expected to alter the landscape of women's reproductive health in the U.S. Republican lawmakers are primed to ban abortion or enact measures regulating the procedure in about half the states, while Democratic lawmakers are readying to enact protections for abortion. 

In a joint dissenting opinion, Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan heavily criticized the majority. "With sorrow -- for this Court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection -- we dissent," they wrote.

Chief Justice John Roberts did not join the majority opinion. He wrote in a concurring opinion that he would not have overturned Roe but instead would have upheld Mississippi's law banning abortions after 15 weeks. 

The decision is expected to be met with fierce protest by many in the country, as did the initial draft majority opinion when it was obtained and published by Politico in May.   

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