State Supreme Court says yes to abortion ballot

By John Sharp

At the last minute, all legal issues have been settled and the number of proposed amendments to the Missouri constitution and proposed new laws that will be on the November 5 statewide ballot and their ballot wording are now finalized.

The most significant issue that was heavily involved in litigation was Amendment 3 proposed by initiative petition to include protection of reproductive rights including abortion and contraception in Missouri’s constitution, which if approved by a majority of those voting will overturn the state’s current ban on almost all abortions except in cases of medical emergencies, with no exceptions allowed for cases of rape or incest.

A circuit judge had ordered the proposal to be stricken from the ballot for not specifying exactly what current laws will be invalidated by the measure’s passage, but with just hours left before the deadline for specifying what measures will be on the ballot the Missouri Supreme Court overruled that decision and ordered Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft to put the measure on the ballot.

The court’s decision was praised by Rachel Sweet, campaign manager for Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, the group that organized the petition drive to put the measure on the ballot.

“Missourians overwhelmingly support reproductive rights, including access to abortion, birth control and miscarriage care,” she said in a statement.

Supporters of Amendment 3 also successfully challenged the “fair ballot language” drafted by Ashcroft which is posted next to sample ballots at polling places which stated that the amendment “will enshrine the right to abortion at any time of a pregnancy”, even though the proposed amendment clearly allows abortion to be restricted or banned after fetal viability (generally considered to be around 24 weeks) except to protect the life or health of the pregnant woman.

Another proposed constitutional amendment to allow a riverboat casino to be approved on the Osage River – Amendment 5 – was added to the ballot at the last minute after proponents successfully challenged Ashcroft’s determination that the petition drive had not collected enough valid signatures in one congressional district.

If approved, the amendment would authorize the Missouri Gaming Commission to license a gambling boat on the Osage River between Bagnall Dam and the Missouri River which is expected to be located in the Lake of the Ozarks tourist area.

Annual gaming tax revenue from operation of the boat is estimated to total about $14.3 million, and net revenue will be appropriated for early-childhood literacy programs in public schools.