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 The justices provided a legal victory to Trump's administration even
though the teenager already has had the abortion because it
eliminated a precedent at the federal appeals court level that could
have applied in similar circumstances in which other detained minors
sought abortions.
In the unsigned opinion with no dissents, the justices threw out the
lower court decision on the grounds that the dispute became moot
once the teenager had the abortion.
The girl, whose name and nationality were not disclosed and was
called "Jane Doe" in legal papers, had an abortion on Oct. 25 in
Texas, the day after a U.S. appeals court ruled against the Trump
administration's objections.
The case involves the intersection of two divisive social issues on
which Trump has taken a hard line: abortion and immigration.
Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec welcomed the court's
action. "The Supreme Court has repeatedly made clear that the
federal government is not required to facilitate abortions for
minors and may choose policies favoring life over abortion. We look
forward to continuing to press the government's interest in the
sanctity of life."
The justices also allowed litigation to continue in lower courts
concerning other detained immigrants in similar situations.
On March 30, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington issued
an injunction preventing the administration from impeding access to
abortion by detained immigrant minors. Chutkan also certified a
class action of similar minors to challenge the administration's
policy.
'STRIKE IT DOWN'
"Today's decision doesn't affect our ongoing efforts to ensure that
all 'Janes' can get an abortion if they need one," said lawyer
Brigitte Amiri of the American Civil Liberties Union, which
represented the girl. "The district court has blocked the Trump
administration's cruel policy of obstructing unaccompanied immigrant
minors' access to abortion while the case continues, and we won't
stop until we strike it down once and for all."
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The ACLU, which has filed a range of lawsuits against the
administration, sued in Washington in October, seeking a decision on
obtaining abortions that would be binding in future similar cases.
The justices on Monday declined to take up the administration's
request for disciplinary action against the ACLU lawyers. The
administration had accused them of misleading the Justice Department
over when she would have the abortion. The department has said it
was preparing to appeal that ruling to the Supreme Court when it
learned the girl had already had the abortion early that morning.
[L2N1N01BN]
The high court said that it takes misconduct allegations against
lawyers seriously but said "not all communication breakdowns
constitute misconduct."
A 1973 Supreme Court ruling legalized abortion nationwide. One of
the issues raised by the current case is whether illegal immigrant
women have the same right to an abortion as American citizens and
legal residents.
The girl entered the United States without any family in September
2017 and was immediately detained by U.S. authorities and placed in
a shelter in Texas for unaccompanied illegal immigrant minors.
She sought and received a Texas court order to approve the abortion
because she a minor, and scheduled a sonogram and consultation with
a physician, as required by Texas law. But the administration
refused to let her leave the detention center to carry out those
steps.
(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Will Dunham)
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