Will Gittins
What is the history of
Roe v Wade?
In 1969 Texas woman Norma McCorvey wanted to terminate an unwanted pregnancy, but abortion was illegal in the state.
Photo: Lorie Shaull
Texas attorneys Linda Coffee and Sarah Weddington wanted to challenge the state's abortion laws and took McCorvey's case.
They filed on behalf of McCovey using the pseudonym 'Jane Doe', against Henry Wade, Dallas County district attorney.
In June 1970 a Texas district court ruled that the state's abortion ban violated the constitutional right to privacy.
However Wade continued to prosecute doctors performing abortions and the case went to the Supreme Court.
In 1973 the Supreme Court voted 7-2 to strike down the Texas abortion ban, granting legal status for the procedure.
In his written opinion, Justice Harry Blackmun stated that the 14th Amendment's right to privacy covered abortion.
That set the precedent for abortion rights in the US, which was then upheld in Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992).
However the precedent now faces the most serious threat in 49 years and Roe v Wade could be struck down later this year.
When will the Supreme Court release the official ruling on Roe v Wade? Roe v. Wade: Why does the case influence abortion rights?
Roe V Wade
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