CNN - Roe vs. Wade


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The evolution of the abortion debate

The history of abortion rights in the United States, like most other aspects of the issue, has been sharply disputed for centuries by both sides.

	The legal status of abortion rights during this period is unclear. The U.S. Supreme Court in its 1973 Roe vs. Wade ruling determined that abortion was not illegal under common law in the 18th century. But some historians claim abortion was clearly illegal during that time, although the issue was rarely tested in the courts.
	Connecticut becomes the first state to outlaw abortions, specifically after the point when the woman perceives signs of fetal life within her -- a stage called "quickening."
	A Massachusetts judge rules that abortion with the woman's consent is not punishable before "quickening" begins.
	Abortions, although illegal nationwide, are believed to end, by some estimates, one in three or four pregnancies.
	The incidence of babies born deformed as a result of the drug thalidomide taken by their mothers, and an outbreak of rubella, or three-day measles, which also can cause birth defects, prompts officials to reexamine laws banning abortion.
	Hawaii becomes first state to repeal a criminal abortion law.
	The Supreme Court decision in Roe vs. Wade legalizes abortion under the constitutional right to privacy, and overturns the Texas abortion law, first enacted in 1857. The ruling gives women across the country an absolute right to abortion in the first three months of pregnancy.
	In Bellotti vs. Baird, the Supreme Court invalidates a Massachusetts law requiring parental consent for abortions sought by women under age 18, saying minors could obtain permission from a judge instead of by a parent.
	In Harris vs. McRae, the Supreme Court upholds a federal law banning the use of Medicaid funds for abortions, except when necessary to save a woman's life.
	The Supreme Court rejects the Reagan administration's attempt to overturn the high court's 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision, and strikes down a Pennsylvania law designed to discourage women from having abortions.
	In a series of split votes in Webster vs. Reproductive Health Services, the Supreme Court upholds a Missouri law barring the use of public money and public facilities for abortions, and prohibiting abortions by public employees. This gives states new authority. The court also orders doctors to test any fetus more than 20 weeks old for its ability to survive, or viability.
	In Planned Parenthood vs. Casey, the high court upholds the requirements of a 24-hour waiting period, mandatory anti-abortion counseling, parental consent for minors and record-keeping by doctors.
	The Supreme Court abandons the "trimester" approach to abortion that was institutionalized in Roe vs. Wade and which outlined a woman's and states' rights during each trimester of a pregnancy. Justices also rule that a state may assert its interest in the fetus throughout a pregnancy, but determine that states may not place substantial obstacles in the path of a woman seeking an abortion.
	President Clinton lifts the so-called gag rule that forbade doctors in federally funded clinics from mentioning abortion as an option. He also lifts a ban on the use of fetal tissue in research.
	Clinton vetoes legislation that would have banned a type of late-term abortion.