Judge Robert McBurney Overturns Georgia's 6-Week Abortion Ban, Brands It as Unconstitutional

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney overturns Georgia's six-week abortion ban, branding two key parts of the law as unconstitutional, and arguing that it cannot be enforced.

McBurney's 15-page ruling stemmed from a lawsuit that argued Georgia's "heartbeat bill" violated the liberty and privacy rights of pregnant people under the state's constitution. Furthermore, the plaintiffs argued that the law violated the United States Constitution at the time that it was enacted, in 2019 when Roe v. Wade was still in effect in the region.

Georgia's Abortion Ban

The executive director of the advocacy group SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, Monica Simpson, is the lead plaintiff in the case and said that it was crucial for Georgians to see these legal victories as steps forward.

After Judge McBurney's decision on Tuesday, abortion access in the state was revered to the pre-ban level of up to 22 weeks of pregnancy. A spokesman for Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Andrew Isenhour, released a statement saying that the judge's ruling "places the personal beliefs of a judge over the will of the legislature and people of Georgia," as per the Washington Post.

McBurney's ruling immediately prompted the Georgia attorney general's office to file an appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court. The state's abortion law was among the strictest in the country when Kemp signed it into law in 2019. The legislation bans abortions after health experts detected fetal cardiac activity, which is roughly at six weeks.

The law was blocked from taking effect until this summer when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Judge McBurney, on the other hand, said that "per controlling Georgia precedent," the relevant legal environment to consider was not the current post-Roe era, but instead when it was enacted.

According to Fox News, a spokesperson for Georgia General Attorney Chris Carr, Kara Richardson, said that they have already filed the notice of appeal. The representative said they would continue to fulfill their duty to defend the laws of the state in court.

Inherently Unconstitutional

On Tuesday, Judge McBurney ruled that the 2019 law may one day become the law of Georgia, but noted that it would only be after the General Assembly decides on the matter. Abortion took center stage during Georgia's midterm elections, along with the rest of the United States.

The situation comes as multiple women have also accused Georgia Republican Senate nominee Herschel Walker of pressuring them to get an abortion during their relationships. But, these are all allegations that the GOP candidate has denied.

Simpson noted that after a long, harsh road, they are now able to celebrate the end of an extreme abortion ban. She noted that the law should never have existed in the first palace as it was steeped in white supremacy.

In 2019, when Kemp was approving the measure, he said that he realized that someday it would be challenged in a court of law. However, the Republican said that it was his job to do what was right and not what was easy, CNN reported.