The United States Supreme Court has voted to strike down the controversial Roe v. Wade decision, according to an initial draft of the majority opinion obtained by Politico.
The draft, written by Justice Samuel Alito, “is a full-throated, unflinching repudiation of the 1973 decision which guaranteed federal constitutional protections of abortion rights and a subsequent 1992 decision – Planned Parenthood v. Casey – that largely maintained the right,” Politico reported. “Deliberations on controversial cases have in the past been fluid. Justices can and sometimes do change their votes as draft opinions circulate and major decisions can be subject to multiple drafts and vote-trading, sometimes until just days before a decision is unveiled. The court’s holding will not be final until it is published, likely in the next two months.”
Alito reportedly writes in a document titled “Opinion of the Court” that “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start” and that “we hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled.”
“It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives,” he reportedly added.
Politico’s report said that they received a copy of the draft opinion from “a person familiar with the court’s proceedings in the Mississippi case along with other details supporting the authenticity of the document.”
Other Supreme Court Justices that sided with Alito included Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett. It is not clear how Chief Justice John Roberts will vote.
“The Constitution does not prohibit the citizens of each State from regulating or prohibiting abortion,” the draft concludes. “Roe and Casey arrogated that authority. We now overrule those decisions and return that authority to the people and their elected representatives.”
The draft’s leak caused an immediate reaction online with notable figures and publications weighing in on the matter, including SCOTUSblog, which wrote: “It’s impossible to overstate the earthquake this will cause inside the Court, in terms of the destruction of trust among the Justices and staff. This leak is the gravest, most unforgivable sin.”
It’s impossible to overstate the earthquake this will cause inside the Court, in terms of the destruction of trust among the Justices and staff. This leak is the gravest, most unforgivable sin.
— SCOTUSblog (@SCOTUSblog) May 3, 2022
Other notable initial responses to the leak included:
- Megyn Kelly, journalist: “Omg. Legal earthquake if true but first: how in God’s name did a draft SCOTUS OPINION LEAK? Insanely unorthodox, inappropriate, UNPRECEDENTED. Disgusting breach, frankly. Will be major investigation into who did it.”
- Allie Beth Stuckey, podcast host: “As happy as I am about the SCOTUS abortion decision – why leak it now? So the leftists’ weeping and gnashing of teeth can get Roberts to change his mind?”
- Scott Jennings, CNN commentator: “I hope the leaker is found and prosecuted if this an attempt to violate this institution and bully the Court. Stay the course, Constitutional conservatives.”
This article was expanded after publication to include additional information.