MA governor signs abortion buffer zone bill News
MA governor signs abortion buffer zone bill

[JURIST] Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick [official website] signed a bill [Bill S.2281; text] Wednesday tightening security regulations to protect clients and patients at abortion clinics from abusive protests and demonstrations. The Act to Promote Public Safety and Protect Access to Reproductive Health Care Facilities was proposed in reaction to the Supreme Court’s recent ruling [JURIST report] that the state’s prior 35-foot “buffer zone” law was unconstitutional. The new bill prohibits protesters from impeding access to reproductive health facilities or using force or physical threats against those seeking to enter or depart from such a facility. Demonstrators in violation of these regulations will be dispersed and banned from coming within 25 feet of the facility for 8 hours, or until the facility closes.

Reproductive rights [JURIST backgrounder] and abortion [JURIST news archive] remain highly contested issues across the US. The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit [official website] ruled [JURIST report] earlier this month to overturn a Mississippi state law that would have closed the only abortion clinic in the state. In June Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal [official website] signed into law [JURIST report] bills requiring abortion doctors to have hospital admitting privileges and banning the providing of information or materials on abortion in state-funded schools. Earlier in June the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit [official website] continued to block [JURIST report] Arizona’s strict new abortion law from going into effect until the lawsuit challenging it can be resolved.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

Nepal ends monarchy, establishes republic

On December 28, 2007, the Kingdom of Nepal's interim parliament ended the country's monarchy and established the Republic of Nepal. Free elections were held on April 10 of the following year to elect a Constituent Assembly.

Learn more about the rise of democracy in Nepal.