In a 3 -2 decision today, the S.C. Supreme Court sided with Planned Parenthood, killing the Fetal Heartbeat Bill legislation passed by the S.C. General Assembly in 2021.
The law was passed by the General Assembly on February 18, 2021.
The bill was signed by Governor Henry McMaster. The 2021 law limited abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, requires abortion providers to give the mother the opportunity to see an ultrasound, hear her baby’s heartbeat, and receive information about her child’s development.
The Plaintiffs opposing the enacted law were: Planned Parenthood South Atlantic; Greenville Women’s Clinic; Katherine Farris, M.D.; and Terry Buffkin, M.D.
The defendants were the State of South Carolina.
In casting her deciding vote for Planned Parenthood, Hearn wrote:
Today we consider whether The Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act (“the Act”) violates a woman’s constitutional right to privacy, as guaranteed in article I, section 10 of the South Carolina Constitution. We hold that the decision to terminate a pregnancy rests upon the utmost personal and private considerations imaginable, and implicates a woman’s right to privacy. While this right is not absolute, and must be balanced against the State’s interest in protecting unborn life, this Act, which severely limits—and in many instances completely forecloses—abortion, is an unreasonable restriction upon a woman’s right to privacy and is therefore unconstitutional.
Liberal S.C. Supreme Court Justice Kaye Hearn was elected to the South Carolina Supreme Court in May of 2009, after a strong recommendation and JMSC approval of Horry County S.C. State Senator Luke Rankin.
Rankin has been the key member of the Judicial Merit Selection Committee for decades. He Chairs the S.C. Senate Judiciary.
The JMSC screens and qualifies all South Carolina judges.
Each being from Conway, the Rankins and the Hearns have an over 35 year history working together. Kaye Hearn and Luke Rankin also have a history of liberal leaning politics.
LEGISLATING FROM THE BENCH
Said S.C. State Representative Stewart Jones, of Laurens, S.C., “It’s a sad day in South Carolina when the S.C. Supreme Court legislates from the bench, going against the will of the people and the right to equal protection under the law.”
THE ENTIRE SUPREME COURT DECISION CAN BE READ HERE
S.C. Supreme Court Justices C.J Beatty and J. Few sided with Hearn and for Planned Parenthood.
Justices J. Kittridge and J. James wrote the dissenting arguments in support of the State of S.C. and the Fetal Heartbeat Bill.
SC Supreme Court Kills Heartbeat Bill by MyrtleBeachSC news on Scribd