Abortion and personhood: An essay on the supreme courts role in the abortion issue

In April of 1989, the Supreme Court of the United States heard the case of Webster V Reproductive Health Services 1 presented in oral argument. At this time, I was working as an intern in the Curator's office of the Court and had the opportunity to witness this presentation. When the opinion was handed down in July of that year, it was perceived as causing a number of changes in our nation's policies regarding abortion. Significantly, the five member majority has apparently reversed part of the reasoning behind the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade2 ruling.