WASHINGTON, June 3 (UPI) -- Abortion opponents have been winning victories in state legislatures, although a legal expert says they may lose in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.
"The right-to-life folks are seeing just how far they can push things," Joseph W. Dellapenna, a law professor at Villanova University, told The New York Times.
Dellapenna is the author of "Dispelling the Myths of Abortion History," which argues the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision was based on a flawed view of abortion's legal history. He said the views of Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, President Obama's nominee to replace Justice John Paul Stevens, are still unknown.
"It could turn out they can push things a lot farther than people think," Dellapenna said. "Or it could not."
Recent state legislative victories for the anti-abortion movement include a Mississippi law banning abortion coverage in the new health insurance exchanges. In Oklahoma, the Legislature has passed three anti-abortion bills over Gov. Brad Henry's veto.
About 370 anti-abortion bills have been introduced in state legislatures this year, up from 350 a year in 2004 through 2009 and 250 15 years earlier.
