1. Know the following court cases.
A. Roe V. Wade (January 22nd, 1973)
Situation: Jane Roe (Norma Mc Corvey)
Main Ruling: Lifted bans on abortion in all 50 states. A woman’s “ right to privacy” extends to her liberty to terminate an unwanted pregnancy
Also: The unborn are not “ persons” and thus ineligible for constitutional protection.
B. Doe V. Bolton (January 22nd, 1973)
Main Ruling- It expanded the definition of the “ health: of the mother to include financial and psychological issues etc. as determined by her physician.
C. Eisenstaedt V. Baird (Decided March 22nd 1972)
Massachusetts law made it a felony for anyone to give away a drug, medicine, instrument, or article for the prevention of conception except in the case of
A registered physician administering or prescribing it for a married person or
An active registered pharmacist furnishing it to a married person presenting a registered physician's prescription.
Appellee William Baird was convicted under this law first, for exhibiting contraceptive articles in the course of delivering a lecture on contraception to a group of students at Boston University and, second, for giving a young woman a package of Emko vaginal foam at the close of his address. Baird challenged the law as conflicting "with fundamental human rights" under Griswold v. Connecticut.
The Supreme Court agreed, ruling it was unconstitutional to treat married and unmarried people differently regarding contraception. The Court said the right to privacy belongs not to the married couple but to the individual person, and prevents government interference with "matters so fundamentally affecting a person as the decision whether to bear or beget a child.
D. Cruzan V. Missouri (January 11th, 1983)
Nancy was involved in a car accident, which ultimately left her in a persistent vegetative state (PVS). She did not require a respirator like Karen but she did receive all foods and fluids through a feeding tube.