Jackson Free Press

A Jackson attorney and two organizations filed a July 6 lawsuit to block a 2011 voter initiative that would designate that life begins at conception in the state constitution, the Associated Press reported yesterday.

Jackson attorney Rob McDuff filed the lawsuit on behalf of two Lafayette County residents, and Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the American Civil Liberties Union helped file the suit in Hinds County Circuit Court.

"If a fertilized egg were entitled to due process, some doctors might fear that someone might sue them for the impact of a fertility treatment or for lifesaving measures that may be necessary when a woman suffers a miscarriage," McDuff told the Associated Press. He added that the initiative would violate the Mississippi Constitution, because the initiative process can't be used to change the state Bill of Rights.


On April 1, The Mississippi Secretary of State's office approved the initiative after Personhood Mississippi, an anti-abortion grassroots organization, received 106,325 signatures supporting the amendment.

Previous Comments

ID

158637

Comment

"We want to make sure that all human beings have equal protection under the law," (abortion opponent Les) Riley said Wednesday. I just have to remark one more time on what a downright weird idea is expressed here. Very few people regard frozen eggs held for years in vats of liquid nitrogen as "human beings." Even if they oppose fertility treatments, even if they think the eggs should have legal protection, most people still do not regard the eggs as full human beings. Let us say that we are presented with a bus full of school children, teetering on the edge of a cliff. There are 20 children. Inside the bus is a tank with 100 frozen eggs. If we have time to save only the eggs or the children, this logic demands that we save the eggs and let the children die. I submit that almost no one would make that choice. In fact, we would rightly condemn anyone who chose frozen eggs over the lives of children. Because anyone can see that children are actual human beings, and frozen eggs are not. I am proud that this lawsuit was filed in state court. Hopefully, the state itself will throw out this extremist, ill-considered initiative. If not, the feds will throw it out anyway.

Author

Brian C Johnson

Date

2010-07-15T10:46:06-06:00

ID

158638

Comment

Why is it that these anti-abortion groups aren't fighting for children here in the State of Mississippi with whome they can see, smell and feel. There are pending lawsuits against the State because we do not provide adequate support/care for our children who are awards of the State and whose parents, for what ever reason, have given them up or they have been taken by the courts. Wouldn't this be the greater cause with the return of the greatest amount of good? Just Asking?

Author

justjess

Date

2010-07-15T11:45:23-06:00

ID

158667

Comment

Laurie Bertram Roberts, these are things that make you go WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY???????

Author

justjess

Date

2010-07-16T10:08:06-06:00