It took more than a decade, but minors in Illinois will finally be protected under the law. Yesterday the Seventh Circuit lifted a federal injunction which had prevented Illinois’ parental notice law from going into effect.
The law had been enacted in 1995, but it was, of course, challenged, as we have come to expect from abortion rights advocates. After all, the health of minors is not exactly their top concern.
A federal court enjoined the law. However, under the court’s ruling, the Illinois Supreme Court simply needed to enact some rules directing an appeals process for those minors wanting to obtain abortions without telling their parents. But the Illinois Supreme Court did not do so, and the parental notice law was left languishing for over a decade.
Following a petition from DuPage State’s Attorney Joseph Birkett in 2006, the Illinois Supreme Court unanimously adopted the rules necessary for implementing the parental notice act. At that point, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan petitioned a federal district judge to lift the original decision blocking enforcement of the law; when he denied her petition, the case landed at the Seventh Circuit.
Illinois now joins the majority of states which protect minors through parental involvement laws. Currently, 25 states require parental consent before a minor can obtain an abortion, and 12 states require that a parent be notified before a minor can obtain an abortion. In 1992, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states may constitutionally require a minor to attain the consent of a parent or guardian before obtaining an abortion.
