State still mulling legal ramifications of Roe v. Wade decision

Jun. 29—A special session of the Legislature to address the impact of the end of Roe v. Wade has not yet been announced as West Virginia leaders and attorneys examine legal ramifications, including an abortion law already on the books.

Gov. Jim Justice addressed the issue during his pandemic briefing Tuesday when asked what his personal views are on what the state should do on abortion rights.

"I don't want to impose my feelings on anyone, but I stand firmly for life," he said. "I also stand for logic and reason."

Justice said all aspects of the impact of the Roe v. Wade U.S. Supreme Court decision, which puts the decision on abortion rights in the hands of each state, must be examined.

"This has to take some time," he said. "We have laws on the books right now."

Those laws have been in place since the late 1880s, not long after West Virginia became a state, and prohibit abortions with felony penalties for anyone who is convicted of performing one.

However, the laws were also struck down in a decision shortly after Roe v. Wade became the law of the land in 1972 when they were found unconstitutional based on Roe v. Wade, which granted the legal right for a woman to have a abortion before the age of viability of the fetus, about 23 weeks.

"There are a lot of moving parts here," Justice said, and his staff is discussing the legal aspects with Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who is expected to issue an opinion this week on what the state's legal options are.

"We absolutely need to work with our attorney general and legislators ... we all need to work together," he said. "There is a lot, lot, lot to discuss and look at."

Justice said the state must not be hasty.

"Before we jump, let's be prudent and let's be smart," he said. "We don't need to be running and jumping up on a soap box for political notice."

Justice said that whatever decisions are made they should be a "reflection of West Virginians and surely comply with the law."

"We are going to come out of this with what is right for West Virginia," he said.

But with the decision back into the hands of the states, it is unclear where the state will go from here as far as a total ban, a ban with exceptions or any window of opportunity regardless of reasons.

A Republican super majority in both the House and Senate could mean a swift decision, and statewide as well as local reactions by politicians reflect a restrictive approach.

After the Supreme Court decision was announced on Friday, Senate President Craig Blair, R-Berkeley, and Speaker of the House Roger Hanshaw, R-Clay, released a joint statement on the decision.

"We applaud the U.S. Supreme Court's decision today to affirm that every human life is precious," they said. "We stand strong with the majority of West Virginians who have shown us and told us they believe unborn children are entitled to the same rights as everyone, and we are ready to expeditiously take any necessary steps to ensure we continue to save and protect as many innocent lives as possible in West Virginia."

The statements said legislative attorneys have been preparing for this decision for weeks.

"Abortion is addressed in numerous statutes in West Virginia Code, and now our attorneys will need to further review those statutes to determine how they apply in light of this decision," they said. "We will work with the executive branch to address any needs relating to our state's abortion laws that may arise from today's opinion."

Morrisey said he will provide a legal opinion to the Legislature "about how it should proceed to save as many babies' lives as humanly and legally possible."

Local legislators also indicated support of tight restrictions, with a possible exception to save the mother's life, and mixed opinions if those exceptions should include rape or incest.

Del. Joe Ellington, R-Mercer County, who is also an OBGYN physician, said that, "Pending any legislation to clarify our state's current code, I would probably support some latitude in certain circumstances."

"Obviously, I would have to see what the legislation says before I would support or not support it," he said. "I don't favor abortions for birth control, nor for just any reason. I can support for affecting life of mother, though those situations would be extremely rare."

Ellington said in instances of genetic anomalies not compatible with life or other genetic anomalies he would leave to patient/ physician.

However, he said he has a conflict with rape/incest as a reason, "although sympathetic to the situation. I would have a hard time justifying why that fetus has no less opportunity to life than other fetuses."

Del. Marty Gearhart, R-Mercer County, said he would support the right to an abortion only in a case where the mother's life is in danger.

"I believe all life is precious," he said.

Del. Doug Smith, R-Mercer County, said abortion "should never be used as a form of birth control and I don't waiver on that position for choice."

"While I don't personally like it, I do believe in exceptions when the life of the mother is endangered or in cases of rape or incest if they are immediately reported," he said.

State Sen. Chandler Swope, R-6th District, said he is pro-life but does support exceptions "in cases of rape, incest and medical circumstances where the life of the mother or baby is at risk."

"I believe life begins at conception," he said. "There are plenty of ways to prevent unwanted pregnancies without using abortion instead of contraception."

Swope said he would probably not be in favor of giving women a window of opportunity for an abortion after she knows she is pregnant regardless of the reasons, but he would be "willing to debate the subject."

Thirteen states had in place "trigger laws," which meant if Roe v. Wade were overturned, medically unnecessary abortions would automatically be banned.

However, lawsuits have already been filed in many states that are at least temporarily blocking some abortion bans.

— Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com

Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com