Gehrke stresses many misinterpret the Illinois law as requiring consent. It’s simply notification to a parent, grandparent, or guardian. And it’s the facility conducting the procedure, not the minor, who must provide the notice.
Of 38 states requiring parental involvement in a minor’s abortion decision, 21 require parental consent — in three of those, both parents must consent, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
If a girl is in a family situation where notifying parents or other relatives would result in her harm, she may go to a judge who then decides whether she is mature and emotionally sound enough to decide for herself. That has happened 550 times since 2013, with a judge denying abortion access once, according to Brigid Leahy, senior director of public policy for Planned Parenthood of Illinois.
Gehrke and other pro-notice activists maintain that the judicial bypass allows a judge to identify minors who are abused or even victims of sex trafficking and get them the social services they need to extricate themselves. Their opponents contend judges are only there to decide the abortion question and have no involvement in saving minors from treachery.
Ed Yohnka, spokesman for the ACLU, whose Judicial Bypass Coordination Project assists girls seeking court intervention, said project lawyers have never experienced an instance where a child needed that kind of rescue, but that judges absolutely would intervene if needed.
That’s reason enough to maintain the law, said Bob Gilligan, executive director of the Catholic Conference of Illinois, which has been lobbying lawmakers to block repeal since the spring legislative session ended.
“If you limit this law, then what what’s out there?” Gilligan asked. “Nothing. Is that good public policy?”
This article originally appeared here.
