Why is Sarah’s Law an amendment to the California Constitution?
The California State Constitution contains a “right of privacy.” Although in 1972, when the privacy amendment was added to the state constitution, it had nothing to do with abortion, this “right to privacy” has since been interpreted by our state courts to create a California state right to abortion, including a right of minors to obtain an abortion without parental consent. California’s parental consent law, Health and Safety Code Section 12345, (passed by the California Legislature and signed by the Governor in 1987) was upheld by the California Supreme Court in 1996, but that decision was reversed in 1997, thus blocking the implementation of California’s parental consent law. Sarah’s Law is a constitutional amendment so that its implementation cannot be blocked by California state courts.
