The Oklahoma Supreme Court today unanimously struck down a proposed ballot measure that sought to amend the state Constitution to grant \"personhood\" rights to human embryos, thereby outlawing abortion and many forms of birth control. <\/p>\n
The state's high court ruled that Initiative Petition No. 395, which supporters had hoped to put to voters in November, was \"clearly unconstitutional\" because if violated a 1992 U.S. Supreme Court decision that upheld a woman's right to an abortion, The Oklahoman says. <\/p>\n
Here's what the amendment, also known as State Question No. 761, sought to do: <\/p>\n
This measure adds a new section to the Oklahoma Constitution to reconcile recent scientific developments with the definition of a human being for the purpose of equal protection under the law. The proposed amendment expands the legal definition of humanity or \"personhood\" to include every human being, regardless of place of residence, race, gender, age, disability, health, level of function, condition of dependency, or method of reproduction, from the beginning of biological development to the end of natural life. The amendment applies the term \"person\" under the Oklahoma Constitution equally to every human being so defined and prohibits the intentional killing of any such \"person\" without due process of law. <\/p>\n
Personhood Oklahoma, which initiated the petition, said the organization's attorneys would decide on how to proceed after reading the decision. <\/p>\n
Opponents said the measure would ban all abortions, limit a woman's choice of contraception and jeopardize in vitro fertilization. <\/p>\n
\"In this case, the Oklahoma Constitution said it best: It is not acceptable to propose amendments that are 'repugnant to the Constitution of the United States,\" said Nancy Northup, the head of the Center for Reproductive Rights. <\/p>\n
The court's ruling was the second major blow to the personhood movement in Oklahoma in the past few days. On Thursday, leaders of the state House refused to take up a Senate-passed measure that declared life begins at conception. <\/p>\n
Elsewhere, a federal judge in Nevada has blocked a personhood ballot measure from the November ballot, The Hill notes. <\/p>\n
Last year, Mississippians rejected such a constitutional change, and Colorado voters have defeated a similar measure twice. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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\nOkla. top court rejects embryo 'personhood'<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"