South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds yesterday signed a document banning almost all abortions in the state, making no exception for pregnancies that are results of incest or rape. Although the measure will be an extremely restrictive one — permitting abortion only if the mother’s life is in danger — the new law will be mired in the court systems and will be unlikely to take effect unless it is upheld by the Supreme Court. Justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito, both conservative Justices and Bush appointees, have the potential to swing the Supreme Court into conservatism and to overturn Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in 1973. The law is, however, slated to be put into action on July 1st and carries a five-year prison sentence for any doctor who performs an illegal abortion.

For now, the 800 or so women who annually have abortions in South Dakota will be subject to the current law, itself stringent, which puts increasingly severe restrictions on abortions throughout the course of pregnancy. Abortions after the 24th week may currently only be performed to protect the mother’s health and safety.

Mimi Hanaoka