Hodgson v. Minnesota – Abortion Rights
Hodgson v. Minnesota, 497 U.S. 417 (1990).
FACTS: Under a Minnesota statute, no abortion could be performed on a woman under the age of 18 until at least 48 hours after both parents had been notified. The required notice was mandatory unless a physician at an abortion clinic or other facility certified that an immediate abortion was necessary to prevent the death of the woman, or unless both parents in writing consented to the abortion, or the minor was a victim of parental abuse or neglect. The United States Supreme Court granted cert.
ISSUE: Is the requirement of notice to both a minor’s parents prior to an abortion reasonably related to legitimate state interests?
RULE OF LAW: No. The requirement of notice to both a minor’s parents prior to an abortion is not reasonably related to legitimate state interests.
The court held that the requirement that a minor wait 48 hours after notification of a single parent is proper, and the requirement that both parents be notified does not reasonably further any legitimate state interest.
Concurring in part and Dissenting in part (O’Connor): The statute cannot be sustained if the obstacles it imposes are not reasonably related to legitimate state interests. Only half the minors in the State of Minnesota reside with both biological parents. A third lives with only one parent.
Concurring in part and Dissenting in part (Kennedy): The statute requires that if the two parent notice requirement is invalidated, the pregnant minor must get a court order permitting the abortion to proceed. This portion of the statute was sustained.