State Supreme Court Rulings on Criminal Abortion

During the nineteenth century, rapid advancements in science and medicine quickly shifted sentiment on induced abortions among physicians, legislators, and jurists, within the United States.

This video progresses through several decades, summarizing rulings of state supreme court cases relating to criminal abortion before ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment.

The earlier rulings were entirely based on English common law, as it existed upon American independence. Over the decades, courts began to reference newer statutory laws in rulings, or the rulings themselves led to the drafting of such laws. In some cases, new scientific knowledge on embryology influenced the rulings.