A good crowd gathered at the Capitol Monday to protest the egregious U.S. Supreme Court ruling stripping women of medical autonomy.

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The crowd walked down to the River Market, in advance of the July 4 concert and fireworks show, and were greeted with a show of police force. It’s unclear if the peaceful protest march prompted the police phalanx or whether it was simply a reaction to a big crowd on the day a shooter opened fire on an Illinois July 4 parade. Whatever, one disorderly conduct arrest was reported.

 

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UPDATE: Indeed, the LRPD mobilized the armed force because of the protest. Said a statement:

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As the evening progressed, protestors made their way towards the downtown River
Market area. Due to the size of the crowd, the Little Rock Police Department activated the Special Response Unit(SRU) in order to maintain peace and protect citizens, as well as protestors. Although the SRU was activated, they were not utilized. However, at least one person was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.

And this morning, I got a copy of the report on the disorderly conduct arrest of William Stockton, 34, of West Monroe, La. The narrative from the incident report:

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The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette coverage of the day’s event included what has become a rote, but imprecise, recitation of the Arkansas abortion law.

Said the article:

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Arkansas law prohibits abortions except in cases where the mother’s life is at risk.

 

What the law actually says:

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A person shall not purposely perform or attempt to perform an abortion except to save the life of a pregnant woman in a medical emergency.

The statute adds;

 “Medical emergency” means a condition in which an abortion is necessary to preserve the life of a pregnant woman whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness, or physical injury, including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself;

The Arkansas legislature outrageously allowed no consideration for the health of the mother or a mere “risk” to her life. Only life-preserving treatment is allowed, putting the interest, sometimes, of a fatally deformed fetus ahead of the interests of a living adult. Not to mention a medical condition that, though survivable, might leave lasting damage to the woman.

The question of whether a life is “at risk” or whether an abortion is necessary to “save the life” is already causing problems for doctors around the country, with delays in needed medical procedures as doctors and lawyers discuss whether a doctor is safe to proceed with medical treatment without risk of arrest.

Even treatment of ectopic pregnancies is causing concern for doctors. The Arkansas law says, with no elaboration, it is not an abortion to “remove an ectopic pregnancy.” Ready to prove that, doc?

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The calculated deprivation of rights in laws such as Arkansas’s already have cancer doctors telling pregnant women they can’t continue chemotherapy because it could cause abortion. And they have interfered with prescriptions for drugs that treat arthritis because of the potential for causing miscarriages.

There is no ready solution to this other than a change in personnel on the U.S. Supreme Court or a wholesale rejection of legislatures like the evil-doers in power in Arkansas. Neither is likely in the foreseeable future.

Good commentary on the “monstrous cruelty” of the medical issue in the abortion ban laws and the lack of exceptions for rape victims and minors from the Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin: