In Doe v. State of Minnesota, (MN Dist. Ct., July 11, 2022), a Minnesota state trial court judge in a 140-page opinion held that a series of state abortion restrictions violate various provisions in the Minnesota state Constitution. The court summarized its conclusions:
[T]his court concludes that Minnesota abortion laws relating to mandated physician care, hospitalization, criminalization, parental notification, and informed consent are unconstitutional.
These abortion laws violate the right to privacy because they infringe upon the fundamental right under the Minnesota Constitution to access abortion care and do not withstand strict scrutiny. The parental notification law violates the guarantee of equal protection for the same reasons. The informed consent law also violates the right to free speech under the Minnesota Constitution, because it is misleading and confusing, and does not withstand intermediate scrutiny. Accordingly, this court is declaring those laws unconstitutional and permanently enjoining their enforcement.
Courthouse News Service reports on the decision.
