Planned Parenthood of Alaska v. Campbell

10.08.09 - This is a pre-election challenge to a proposed ballot measure in Alaska that would, if passed by the voters, require notification of one parent of a minor, followed by a 48-hour delay, prior to the performance of an abortion.

Filing Date: 7/31/2009

State: Alaska

Plaintiff(s): Planned Parenthood of Alaska, Susan Wingrove

Center Attorney(s): Janet Crepps

Co-Counsel/Cooperating Attorneys: Eve Gartner and Diana Aguilar, Planned Parenthood Federation of America; Laura Einstein, Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest; Jeffrey Feldman and Alexander O. Bryner, Feldman Orlansky & Sanders

Summary: In 1997, the Alaska legislature passed a law requiring physicians to obtain the consent of a parent prior to performing an abortion on a patient under the age of 17. After a 10 year legal battle, the law, which had never been allowed to take effect, was declared unconstitutional by the Alaska Supreme Court. Since that 2007 ruling, the Alaska legislature has considered, but has not passed, parental involvement legislation.

Anti-abortion activists in Alaska are now seeking to place an initiative on the 2010 ballot that would require notice to one parent, followed by a 48-hour delay, the written consent of one parent, or judicial authorization, before a minor can receive an abortion. Before the initiative can be placed on the ballot, the Lieutenant Governor is required to certify that the measure does not include subjects that cannot be addressed through initiatives and that it is in the proper form.

The Center is challenging the Lieutenant Governor's certification of the parental notice initiative on the grounds that it improperly seeks to enact court rules, and is confusing and incomplete. We are asking the court to declare that the initiative cannot be presented to the voters.