Pro-life lawyers fight to end delay on Illinois Parental Notice of Abortion Act

Chicago, Ill., May 29, 2010 / 16:09 pm

Although a judge has already ruled that the Parental Notice of Abortion Act in Illinois is constitutional, he has also issued a stay of his decision, thereby delaying the implementation of the law. As a result, attorneys from the Thomas More Society filed an appeal on May 28 to have the stay lifted.

The legislation, which would require parental notification in the case of minors seeking to procure an abortion, has been held up from being enacted in the state due to attacks by the American Civil Liberties Union and others, according to Peter Breen, the Thomas More Society's executive director and legal counsel.

The Act has been on hold since 1995, when it was first introduced.

“The Illinois Parental Notice of Abortion Act has held up numerous times against attacks by the ACLU and other opponents, and we believe there is no legal reason to prevent implementation of this long-overdue and much- needed law in Illinois,” Breen said.

“It is time to enforce this law and put an end to secret abortions in Illinois,” he added.

Previously, local Judge Daniel Riley dismissed the ACLU's lawsuit challenging the constitutionality  the act, yet imposed a stay of his decision until the ACLU's appeal is complete. This process, argued the Thomas More Society, could take additional years.

The society claimed that Judge Riley's stay has ultimately contradicted the will of the people in Illinois and is a violation of Illinois law, given the fact that the Act has been found constitutional.