AG Jeff Landry Files Legal
Brief in Support of Law Prohibiting Eugenic Abortions
BATON
ROUGE, LA – Attorney General Jeff Landry has joined
Louisiana to a coalition of 22 states in filing a legal brief at the United
States Supreme Court in support of an Arkansas law that would prohibit
abortions solely based on a prenatal Down Syndrome diagnosis.
"An
extra chromosome should not and must not mean a death sentence,” said
Attorney General Landry. "I stand firm in supporting the rule of law and
defending the unborn from eugenic abortion."
Attorney General Landry and his
colleagues noted in their brief, “people with Down Syndrome add unique joy,
beauty, and diversity to our society; yet the abortion of children with Down
Syndrome approaches genocidal levels, threatening the Down Syndrome community with
complete elimination.”
Attorney General Landry argues
that Arkansas’ law advances at least eight compelling state interests:
- Protecting the entire class of persons with Down Syndrome
from being targeted for elimination solely because of disability;
- Eradicating
historical animus and bias against persons with Down Syndrome;
- Safeguarding
the integrity of the medical profession by preventing doctors from abandoning
their traditional role as healers to become the killers of disabled populations;
- Drawing
a clear boundary against additional eugenic practices targeted at disabled
persons and others;
- Countering
the stigma that eugenic abortion currently imposes on persons with disabilities;
- Ensuring
that the existing Down Syndrome community does not become starved of resources
for research and care for individuals with Down Syndrome;
- Protecting
against the devaluation of all human life inherent in any decision to target a
person for elimination based on an immutable characteristic; and
- Fostering the diversity of society and protecting society from the incalculable loss that would occur if people with Down Syndrome were eliminated.
The State attorneys general also
make the argument that Arkansas’ prohibition against Down Syndrome abortions is
not per se invalid under Roe v. Wade and Planned
Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey.
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Joining Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt in the Leslie
Rutledge v. Little Rock Family Planning Services amicus brief are the state attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho,
Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma,
South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.