Analysis: Alabama Supreme Court Makes Major Women's Rights Ruling Based on God

Alabama Supreme Court Rules Frozen Embryos are Legally “Children”

Supreme Court of Alabama | Public Domain

The Alabama Supreme Court has issued a ruling declaring that frozen embryos possess the legal status of children according to state law. This verdict may potentially have far-reaching consequences for the field of fertility treatment within the state.

Alabama, located in the Deep South, is known for imposing draconian policies.

The ruling was rendered in two cases involving the untimely demise of three different couples, who suffered the loss of their cryopreserved embryos due to an unfortunate incident at a facility specializing in reproductive medicine. The justices, referring to the anti-abortion provision embedded within the Alabama Constitution, decreed that a legislative enactment from 1872, which grants legal recourse to parents in instances of the death of their underage offspring, “applies to all unborn children, regardless of their location.”

The Alabama Supreme Court is composed solely of Republican appointed justices.

“Unborn children are ‘children’ … without exception based on developmental stage, physical location, or any other ancillary characteristics,” Justice Jay Mitchell wrote. 

Mitchell stated that the court had previously issued a ruling stating that fetuses that are murdered during a woman’s pregnancy are included within the scope of Alabama’s Wrongful Death of a Minor Act, and there is no provision that excludes “extrauterine children from the Act’s coverage.”

The ruling has prompted a surge of cautionary advice regarding the potential consequences on procedures for promoting fertility and the preservation of embryos, which were formerly regarded as possessions by the legal authorities. Embryos are still considered possessions in most U.S. states. 

“This ruling is stating that a fertilized egg, which is a clump of cells, is now a person. It really puts into question, the practice of IVF,” Barbara Collura, CEO of RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, recently told The Associated Press.

She stated that the situation gives rise to questions for healthcare providers and individuals seeking medical treatment, such as whether it is possible to preserve embryos produced in the course of fertility therapy or if individuals are permitted to either donate or dispose of unused embryos.

Sean Tipton, a representative from the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, told the Associated Press that at least one fertility clinic in Alabama has received instructions from its associated hospital to temporarily halt all IVF treatment immediately following the decision.

Many individuals who have problems becoming pregnant turn to IVF, and that may no longer be an option in the state of Alabama. Common reasons why someone may need IVF to have children include clogged or damaged fallopian tubes, ovulation disorders endometriosis, uterine fibroids, prior surgery that prevents pregnancy, issues with regard to sperm, genetic disorders, and more. 

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey | Photo by Tech. Sgt. Chris Baldwin | Flickr | Public Domain

In this specific court case, the frozen embryos belonging to the couple were irretrievably damaged subsequent to a hospital patient, who gained unauthorized access to the designated storage freezer, inadvertently dropping the embryos onto the floor. The verdict means that the couple can file a lawsuit for wrongful death.

“[T]he Wrongful Death of a Minor Act is sweeping and unqualified. It applies to all children, born and unborn, without limitation,” the court ruling said.

 “It is not the role of this Court to craft a new limitation based on our own view of what is or is not wise public policy. That is especially true where, as here, the People of this State have adopted a Constitutional amendment directly aimed at stopping courts from excluding ‘unborn life’ from legal protection.”

The court’s ruling was heavily based in theology, which is antithetical to the First Amendment in the U.S. Constitution.

The phrase “separation of church and state” is never directly written in the Constitution, but the concept is found in the first freedom guaranteed under the First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.”

The ruling was based on Alabama Constitution Section 36.06, which posits that every human was created in God’s image, meaning every life has value that cannot be calculated and that “cannot be wrongfully destroyed without incurring the wrath of a holy God.”

“[Alabama Constitution’s] Section 36.06. recognizes that this is true of unborn human life no less than it is of all other human life ― that even before birth, all human beings bear the image of God, and their lives cannot be destroyed without effacing his glory,” the ruling reads.

The South, also known as the Bible Belt, which is dominated by Republicans, is known for having legislation that is influenced by Christianity.

Alabama has many other harmful policies. Until recently, medical marijuana was not even legal. Police in the state still aggressively arrest recreational cannabis users, but disproportionately target Black individuals. 

According to one study by the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, 2351 individuals were arrested for cannabis in 2016 alone. In contrast, in that same year only 1,314 arrests were made for robbery, even though there were 4,557 reported robberies that year.

In 2016, Black individuals were roughly four times more likely to be arrested for the offense of marijuana possession (including both misdemeanors and felonies) in comparison to individuals who are White.

Blacks were also five times more likely than Whites to be arrested specifically for the crime of felony possession of marijuana.

As long as the GOP continues to ignore majoritarian sentiment, draconian laws will persist in states dominated by Republicans. 

Alabama | Photo by Shaundd via Wikimedia Commons