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Groups Challenge Legality of Virgnia Parental Consent Law

Planned Parenthood of Virginia, along with four other state Planned Parenthood affiliates, three health clinics and two physicians, has filed suit claiming that Virginia’s new parental consent law is unconstitutional. The parental consent law requires girls under the age of 18 to notify a parent at least 24 hours before obtaining an abortion. The law is scheduled to take effect on July 1st. The groups are claiming that law denies young girls their privacy and due process rights. Simon Heller, a lawyer for the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy of New York commented on the lawsuit, “In its eagerness to limit access to abortion services, the Virginia legislature has trampled on the constitutional rights of young women. The majority of young women already involve their parents without the government’s interference. Forcing the others to do so will have dire consequences.”

Sources:

The Washington Post - June 13, 1997

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