Protesters react as they gather inside the South Carolina House as members debate a new near-total ban on abortion with no exceptions for pregnancies caused by rape or incest at the state legislature in Columbia, South Carolina, U.S. August 30, 2022.
The South Carolina Supreme Court on a 4-1 vote rejected a request by Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers to reconsider its Aug. 23 ruling, which they said left unanswered what constitutes a "fetal heartbeat" under the Republican-backed law.
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, a Republican, in a statement welcomed the decision.
The U.S. Supreme Court last year overturned its landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that had legalized abortion nationwide, prompting Republican-led states including South Carolina to ban or severely curtail the ability of women to obtain abortions.
The new law came after the state Supreme Court in January struck down a similar abortion law, by a 3-2 vote.
Persons:
Sam Wolfe, Alan Wilson, Roe, Wade, Kaye Hearn, Nate Raymond, Lincoln
Organizations:
Carolina House, REUTERS, South Carolina Supreme, Republican, Greenville Women's Clinic, Carolina, U.S, Supreme, Thomson
Locations:
Columbia , South Carolina, U.S, Greenville, South Carolina, Boston