Ohio Judge Admits She’s Never Denied Teens’ Abortion Bypass Request
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
July 21, 2008
Columbus, OH (LifeNews.com) — Several states have dealt with the problem of judges routinely approving requests for a judicial bypass so teens can get abortions without their parents’ knowledge or consent. Now, an Ohio judge has admitted she’s never denied a single request from a teen to get around the parental involvement law.
The National Right to Life Committee indicates 37 states have parental consent or notification laws and 29 are currently in effect, including Ohio.
Most have a Supreme Court-mandated judicial bypass for the rare instances where girls may be victimized by their parents.
Hundreds of hearings take place before judges in counties across the state where girls want to opt out of having their parents informed of their decision to have an abortion.
The bypass provision is supposed to be limited to cases when teens could face abuse from parents, but it has become a rubber stamp process where judges are, now admittedly, approving ever request they see.
Judge Kim Browne, of Franklin County, admitted to the Columbus Dispatch newspaper that she has never denied a teen’s request for a secret abortion.
"I don’t think I’m playing God at all," she told the newspaper. "That is their choice. That’s the decision they are going to have to live with."
"Many of them will tell me at least one of their parents knows they are pregnant. We get a lot of out-of-town girls who don’t want to go to a judge in their community," she added.
The newspaper indicates state taxpayers pay for the legal advice teen’s receive and most are represented by attorneys on a list compiled by pro-abortion groups or the Planned Parenthood abortion business.
Though teens who may have only been old enough to get pregnant for a few years are supposed to detail a potential for abuse and show they are mature enough to make an abortion decision without any input from parents, that often doesn’t happen.
Some judges say good grades and a clean driving record are sufficient to give the go-ahead for an abortion.
Other states have seen similar problems, including Florida, Michigan and Arizona.
In Florida, legislators have tried, and failed, to get a law passed that would tighten the judicial bypass rules used when a teenager wants to get an abortion without telling her parents.
Figures from the Florida Office of the State Court Administrator show 557 requests for abortion waivers filed in 2006. Of those, about 94 percent were granted.
Arizona lawmakers have tried to limit judicial bypass requests as well asking that judges be instructed to look at other factors in the bypass case such as the girl’s age and experience outside the home as well as whether or not she has fully considered other options like adoption or keeping the baby.
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