Arizona Supreme Court Reinstates Near-Total Ban on Abortions (3)

An 1864 law that criminalized nearly all abortions in Arizona can take effect, the state’s top court said Tuesday.

The law—enacted before Arizona became a state—wasn’t repealed or restricted by a later law that banned abortions after the 15th week of pregnancy, Justice John R. Lopez IV said. That 2022 state law didn’t “create a right to, or otherwise provide independent statutory authority for, an abortion,” he said.

It’s a consequential decision in a state that’s became an abortion battleground after a Democratic-led administration took over in early 2023. Reproductive rights advocates are collecting signatures for a November ballot measure ...