Ohio's top court to consider how Issue 1 affects state's six-week abortion ban

The Ohio Supreme Court, which has been considering a technical question about the state's ban on abortion after six weeks, asked the parties involved in the lawsuit to file written arguments on the impact of a constitutional amendment approved by voters last week.

The head of the state’s leading anti-abortion group said he thinks Issue 1 makes that six-week ban unconstitutional.

The court asked abortion providers and Attorney General Dave Yost to explain what effect, if any, they believe Issue 1 has on the case by Dec. 7, the date the new constitutional amendment takes effect. The case is about some legal issues and not the merits of the six-week ban, also known as the “Heartbeat Law”, which includes no exceptions for rape or incest.

Ohio Right to Life President Mike Gonidakis said he thinks Issue 1 will have a big impact.

“There's going to be some court arguments, there are going to be some things. But just on its face, without getting in the legal weeds here, it would appear that the ‘Heartbeat Law’ would violate the new constitutional standard," Gonidakis said.

The six-week ban, which prohibits abortion at the point fetal cardiac activity can be detected, has been on hold since last fall. A Hamilton County Court ruled last October that the ban was "vague" and should not be enforced.