Alito Ignores Abortion Backlash and Rebuffs Justices’ Critiques

Justice Samuel Alito’s abortion ruling overturning Roe v. Wade remained largely unchanged from the version leaked to the public in May—but in responding to the dissent and concurring opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts, Alito did add some important new elements to the decision.

Among the most notable is a bolstering of “fetal personhood rights,” which give fetuses the same rights as a person, and could be used to strike down state laws allowing abortion.

“According to the dissent, the Constitution requires the states to regard a fetus as lacking even the most basic human right—to live—at least until an ...