Politics & Government

Supreme Court to Hear Appeal of Mass. 'Buffer Zone' Law

Massachusetts lawmaker who wrote bill said it is "important to ensure women's access to reproductive health."

 

The U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday that it will reconsider the constitutionality of a Massachusetts state law passed in 2007 that prohibits protests in 35-foot "buffer zones" at abortion clinics, according to the Associated Press.

The appeal comes from abortion opponents who believe the law unfairly prevents them from engaging patients in conversations at the clinics, the AP reported.

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The high court will take on a decision upholding the law by the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which said it protects the rights of those in the clinics without "offending the First Amendment rights of others," according to the AP.

In a statement, State Rep. Carl Sciortino, a Democrat who represents Medford and Somerville and authored the law, said he wrote it "after witnessing patients and their loved ones force their way through protestors to get to a health clinic."

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Sciortino said that while respecting First Amendment rights, "there is no right to harassment and brutal intimidation, which is exactly what was going on before the bill’s passage. This law is important to ensure women’s access to reproductive health, and this challenge is just another attack from the right in the war on women."


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