A North Dakota state judge has overturned the state’s strict abortion ban, clearing the way for abortion to become legal for the first time in more than a year.

Judge Bruce Romanick ruled that the state Constitution protects a woman’s right to an abortion before the fetus is viable, as requested by termination-of-pregnancy service providers who had challenged the ban. The judge’s order will take effect in 14 days.

In April 2023 North Dakota Republican Governor Doug Bergham signed into law the law banning abortions. Doctors who performed an abortion on a woman could be prosecuted for a felony unless her life was in danger.

The law also provided exceptions for cases of rape and incest, but only during the first six weeks of pregnancy.

Roll back in 2022: Abolish the constitutional right to abortion

America took a leap back in 2022 when the constitutional jurisdiction of abortion was removed. In particular, the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022) is a landmark US Supreme Court decision that overturned the legal protection of abortion rights established by Roe v. Wade in 1973. The case involved a Mississippi state law that banned nearly all abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The Supreme Court, in its decision, stated that the right to abortion is not a constitutional right protected by the Fifth Amendment, and thus states have the power to regulate or prohibit abortion. This decision overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade and caused dramatic changes in abortion law in the US, with many states enacting new, stricter laws or imposing bans.

In which states of America abortions are not allowed

By the end of 2023, abortion laws in the US they are highly varied, with several states implementing restrictions or even outright bans following the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. States where abortions are partially or completely illegal include:

  1. Alabama
  2. Arkansas
  3. Idaho
  4. Kentucky
  5. Louisiana
  6. Mississippi
  7. Missouri
  8. Oklahoma
  9. Tennessee
  10. South Dakota
  11. Texas
  12. West Virginia
  13. Wisconsin

Some of these states have enacted almost complete bans or restrictions, with often few exceptions involving the health or life of the person who is pregnant. Also, legal disputes and ongoing legislative changes mean that the state of abortion laws can change.