Plaintiff in US abortion case welcomes verdict

A divided Supreme Court on Monday struck down a Louisiana law regulating abortion clinics, reasserting a commitment to abortion rights over fierce opposition from dissenting conservative justices in the first big abortion case of the Trump era.

Chief Justice John Roberts and his four more liberal colleagues ruled that a law that requires doctors who perform abortions must have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals violates abortion rights the court first announced in the landmark Roe v. Wade decision in 1973.

The outcome is far from the last word on the decades-long fight over abortion with dozens of state-imposed restrictions winding their way through the courts.

But the decision was a surprising defeat for abortion opponents, who thought that a new conservative majority with two of President Donald Trump's appointees on board would start chipping away at abortion access.

Kathleen Pittman, administrator of Hope Medical Group for Women in Shreveport, Louisiana and also the lead plaintiff in the case welcomed Monday's ruling, but felt the verdict doesn't advance women's situation in the state.

"So, being able to claim this victory is huge for us. I will point out that even though it is a definite win, that it really does nothing to advance reproductive rights in Louisiana, it is basically maintaining the status quo," she said while speaking to the Associated Press.

The key vote belonged to Roberts, who had always voted against abortion rights before, including in a 2016 case in which the court struck down a Texas law that was virtually identical to the one in Louisiana.

"I believe that Justice Roberts was is protecting precedence. I don't believe Justice Robert's opinions have changed. He was a dissenter in whole woman's health. Just a few years ago. So, I think for him, it's all about precedence at this point in time," Pittman said.

The case was the third in two weeks in which Roberts, a George W. Bush appointee, joined the court's liberals in the majority.

The regulations at issue in Louisiana are distinct from other state laws making their way through court challenges that would ban abortions early in a pregnancy.

Those include bans on abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, as early as 6 weeks, and the almost total ban passed in Alabama.