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Show forial f'r-l-- University of Ul'h calt LksClty, VOLUME 17, NUMBER 49 Syllabus et al. ATTORNEY GENERAL OF GEORGIA, et al. v. BOLTON, THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA APPEAL FROM h By Steve Geretel WASHINGTON (UPI) has redrafted Sen. Sam J. Ervin Jr., his legislation giving reporters Georgia law proscribes an abortion except as performed by a duly licensed Georgia physician when necessary in his best clinical judgment because continued pregnancy would endanger a pregnant womans life or injure her health; the fetus would likely be bom with serious defects; or the pregnancy resulted from rape. 02 (a) of Ga. Criminal Code. In addition to a requirement that the patient be a Georgia resident and certain other requirements, the statutory scheme poses three procedural conditions in (b) : (1) that the abortion be performed in a hospital accredited by the Joint Committee on Accreditation of Hospitals (JCAH); (2) that the procedure be approved by the hospital staff abortion committee; and (3) that the performing physicians judgment be confirmed by independent examinations of the patient by two other licensed physicians. Appellant Doe, an indigent married Georgia citizen, who was denied an abortion after eight 02 weeks of pregnancy for failure to meet any of the (a) and injunctive relief, contending conditions, sought dedaratory that the Georgia laws were unconstitutional. Others joining in the complaint included Georgia-licensphysicians (who claimed that the Georgia statutes chilled and deterred their practices), registered nurses, clergymen, and social workers. Though holding that all the plaintiffs had standing, the District Court ruled that only Doe presented a justiciable controversy. In Does case the court gave declaratory, but not injunctive, relief, invalidating as, an infringement of privacy and personal liberty the limitation to the three situations specified in (a) and certain other provisions but holding that the States interest in health protection 26-12- 20-12- 02 26-12- ed 26-12- 02 and the existence of a "potential of independent human existence (b) .of the manner of perjustified regulation through formance as well as the quality of the final decision to abort. The appellants, claiming entitlement to broader relief, directly appealed to this Court. Held: 1. Does case presents a live, justiciable controversy ,and she has , as do the physician-appellan- ts standing to sue, Roe v. Wade, ante, p. who, unlike the physician in Wade, were not charged with abortion violations,), and it is therefore unnecessary to resolve the issue of the other appellants standing. Fp. 9. 2. A woman's constitutional right to an abortion is not absolute. Roe v. Wade, supra, P. 9. 3. The requirement that a physicians decision to perform an abortion must rest upon 'this best clinical judgment of its necessity is not unconstitutionally vague, since that judgment may be made in the light of all the attendant circumstances. United 26-12- 02 qualified immunity from revealing their sources and extended the protection to state, as well as federal 72, 26-12- 02 12-1- mester of pregnancy would be invalid on that ground alone, see Roe v. Wade, supra. Pp. 5. (b) The interposition of a hospital committee on abortion, a procedure not applicable as a matter of state criminal law to other surgical situations, is unduly restrictive of the patients rights, which are already safeguarded by her personal physician. 12-1- Pp. 15-1- 7. also has (c) Required acquiescence by two no rational connection with a patient's needs and unduly infringes on her physicians right to practice. Pp. 17-5. The Georgia residence requirement violates the Privileges and Immunities Clause by denying protection to persons who enter Georgia for medical sendees there. Pp. 12-2-0. 6. Appellants' equal protection argument centering on the three procedural conditions in (b), invalidated on other 19. 26-12- 02 without merit. P. 20. pounds, 7. No ruling is made on the question of injunctive relief. Roe v. Wade, supra. P. 20. 319 F. Supp. 1043, modified and affirmed. is. Cf. Black ic UN, J., delivered toe opinion of the Court, in which Bubcoer, C. J., and Douglas, Brxnnan, Stxwart, Marshall, and Powxll, JJ., joined. Burger, C. J.j and Douglas, J., filed concurring opinions. White, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Rxhnquist, J., joined. Rehnquut, J., filed a dissenting opinion. $ within the power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce and, moreover, is desirable, Ervin said. He added, a shield law which applied only to the federal court would not fulfill its objectives of protecting the free flow of in- courts. formation. In a speech Wednesday Ervin said If a uniform shield law were not the new bill was his third attempt at in effect, neither sources nor which will acnewsmen could be asured that they legislation commodate both the interest of would not be subpoenaed before tribunals where .the society in law enforcement and the state interest of society in preserving a free flow of information to the ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION by the the court to adopt child. . . .oral agreement with natural mother does not meet statutory requirements. Natural mother lost parental rights by abandonment or desertion of child. Indians. . . .living on reservation governed by state statues. When living off reservation and on public assistance. . .subject to regulations of the Utah State Division Of Family Services. "Grandmother public. is required Ervins Constitutional Rights statute to petition Subcommittee has been holding a series of hearings cm newsmens privilege bills. Similar hearings are being held in the House. A major departure from Ervins original bills is the extension of protection to cover both state and federal governments. I have become convinced during the course of the hearings on this subject, that inclusion of the state is Capsule PRISON RELEASE DENIED IN HABEAS CORPUS PETITION DOLAN v. STATE OF UTAH, et al Plaintiff counsel: William D. Marsh 464 24 St. Ogden Defendant counsel: Vernon B. Romney David S. Young Kent S. Lewis See details page 4. State Courts Waive Bride Measles Test (UPI) - It became a little more get British Traffic LONDON (UPI) . Angeles, one jurist was assigned the task, and other counties are taking similar steps. Lawmakers hope to have the bureaucratic snafu cleared up by next week. They expect enough clinics to be ready by 1974 to handle the testing. organized crime than the Fifth, Amendment. Mollenhoff argued that granting newsmen absolute privilege would be ludicrous and would allow anyone to pose as a journalist and refuse to testify before courts and tone governmental bodies that must use the power of subpoena to obtain witnesses and documents in an effort to elicit the truth, Mollenhoff said. It would be a greater bom to organized crime It than the Fifth Amendment would be disaster to organized government, business and labor. ... - Britain Motor Manufacturers and Traders reports. Its compilation showed 350,000 more new cars added to the already-crowde- d difficult to superior court judge. In Los protection. Under terms of the bill, a newsman is entitled to refuse to reveal to a governmental body the name of his source of information if he had given an assurance, either express or implied, that he would protect the identity of his source. The information must have been obtained in 'the course of the reporters work. Unpublished information is also protected from disclosure, under the Ervin bill. A reporter, however, is not excused from testifying to the identify of any person who commits a crime in his presence. chaos in SACRAMENTO married in California Wednesda- yand practically impossible without the help of a friendly judge. A new state law took effect that requires prospective brides to undergo a blood test for susceptibility to German measles before they can be issued a marriage license by county clerks. However, there are only a handful of clinics in California able to perform the tests far fewer than needed to meet the needs of couples seeking licenses. Legislators are rushing an emergency bill to Gov. Ronald Reagan which will set back the effective date of the rubella test law to next Jan. 1. But the measure wont reach the Governor for a few more days. State Public Health Director Frederick B. Hodges has told clerks in the states 59 counties to instruct couples seeking licenses to obtain a waiver of the new law from a The North Carlina senator, chairman of the Constitutional Rights Subcommittee, said nothing in his bill would prevent states from affording reporters greater other agencies. In short, it would create total registered 1,637,775, new private cars during 1972, the Society of island nations roads last year. testimonial privilege was. different or did not apply, Ervin said. Veteran reporter Clark Mollenhoff contended that a proposed shield law to let newsmen keep their sources secret would be a greater boon to See details page 7. Utah Supreme Court Decision - 7-- States v. VuUch, 402 U. S. 62, 71-Pp. 10-1- 2. 4. The three procedural conditions in (b) violate the 9. Amendment. Fourteenth Pp. accreditation The JCAH requirement is invalid, since (a) the State has not shown that only hospitals (let alone those with JCAH accreditation) meet its interest in fully protecting the patient; and a hospital requirement failing to exclude the first tri- WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 1973 News Reporter Shield Legislation Would Extend Protection to States FOR Argued December 13, 1971 Reargued October 11, 1972 Decided. January 22, 1973 70-4-0. K'uz W-- D-N.- No. AMERICA SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES DOE WSTERN ti. P; r Eventually, an abosolute shield law would hurt the press because it would promote irresponsibility and lack of accountability. Mollenhoff, a Pulitzer Prize winner and Washington Bureau Chief for the Des Moines Register, testified as hearings resumed before a House Judiciary Subcommittee on various D DUSIIIGSS And Finance Marriott Corp, Washington said it Is entering, for the first time, the internal security field with its planned acquisition of Hallmark Oorp., a Miami Internal Security company. Terms of the proposed deal were not disclosed. Cincinnati American Financial Corp. said It will not its offer to acquire all of National General Corpus $40 warrants after the offer expires at the close of business February 27. American Financial said the tender offer yielded about 7 million of the 9,350,000 $40 warrants Issued by re-exte- National GeneraL Fairfield, N. J. Metridata Computing, Inc. and Rapldata said a proposed plan of merger of Metridata Into Rapldata has been terminated. No reason was given. Beverly Hills, Calif. The directors of Hilton Hotels Corp. authorised the purchase of 100,000 shares of the firms own stock until February 8, 1974. The shares, to be purchased on the open market from time to time, will be used for stock options, possible acquisitions and other corporate purposes. proposals to, protect' reporters from being forced to provide information to government agencies. Mollenhoff, once a White House aide in the Nixon Administration, said the press and Congress were wasting their time worrying about shield legislations. We could better use our time on the real threat of executive dic- tatorship President pronouncements executive privilege. Nixons on expanded he said. But William Farr, a Los Angeles reporter who spent 46 days in jail for refusing to disclose sources for a stpry published during the Manson murder trial, urged enactment of legislation granting absolute privilege to newsmen with no loopholes. What I want to stress is that any loophole you allow in this law can be fashioned into a noose that will be used to hang reporters, Farr said. We do not want the legal right to protect sources as a favor to any newsman or to all newsmen," he said. We want such legislation to further the constructive processes of the press, so that the public will be fully and intelligently informed. 4 i |