Following a change in court membership, the South Carolina Supreme Court, in a 4-1 decision, upheld the state’s heartbeat law, just seven months after the court struck down an earlier version.
“[T]he legislature has found that the State has a compelling interest in protecting the lives of unborn children,” the court ruled. “That finding is indisputable and one we must respect … It would be a rogue imposition of will by the judiciary for us to say that the legislature’s determination is unreasonable as a matter of law.”