Potentially lifesaving law again denied by activist judge
From "Illinois Judge Blocks Parental Notification Law" from CitizenLink, posted 3/5/08
An activist judge in Illinois has ruled that teens can continue to get an abortion without telling their parents. Illinois is one of 35 states with parental-notification laws, but the 1984 law has never been enforced.
Joe Scheidler, national director of the Pro-Life Action League, called the inaction an injustice.
“We’re talking here about parents knowing that their minor daughter is having dangerous surgery — sometimes lethal surgery," he said. "And the courts believe that the parents shouldn’t even know about it.”
Sandy Rios, president of the Culture Campaign, said the Parental Notice of Abortion Act is crucial because Illinois is a magnet for women seeking an abortion.
“We have all of these young girls coming from our border states to get abortions because they don’t have to have any parental notification," she said. "There’s just no law, no regulation. And those of us in Illinois are ashamed of that situation.
“The law is very clear. We had a law that was passed by the state Legislature years ago. And we can’t get it enacted because of the judicial activism. It is a disgrace.”
So Illinois parents have the right to inspect their daughter's school curriculum but not to inspect a choice that terminates a life with consequences for a lifetime? "It's a disgrace" is right.
