Priscilla J. Smith
Encyclopedia
Priscilla J. Smith is an American
attorney
known for her activism in the reproductive rights
movement. She is currently employed as a Senior Fellow by The Yale
Law School and was previously an attorney
with the law firm Center For Reproductive Law & Policy (now renamed the Center for Reproductive Rights
).
Smith gained fame for her role in the landmark, albeit controversial, Supreme Court
case Gonzales v. Carhart
. She argued on behalf of the abortion provider LeRoy Carhart
, to challenge the constitutionality of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act
, a federal law that forbids the practice of intact dilation and extraction
. The Supreme Court, in the majority opinion authored by Justice Anthony Kennedy
, upheld the law and ruled against Carhart.
She was also the attorney representing the pregnant women in the case Ferguson v. City of Charleston
against a hospital policy of coercive drug testing on women who received prenatal treatment. The women who were tested positive were often arrested and imprisoned on child abuse
charges. In Ferguson she won the case and the hospital's practice of drug testing was declared unconstitutional by the court.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
known for her activism in the reproductive rights
Reproductive rights
Reproductive rights are legal rights and freedoms relating to reproduction and reproductive health. The World Health Organization defines reproductive rights as follows:...
movement. She is currently employed as a Senior Fellow by The Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
Law School and was previously an attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
with the law firm Center For Reproductive Law & Policy (now renamed the Center for Reproductive Rights
The Center for Reproductive Rights
The Center for Reproductive Rights is a global human rights organization that uses constitutional and international law to secure women's right to an abortion in over 45 countries....
).
Smith gained fame for her role in the landmark, albeit controversial, Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
case Gonzales v. Carhart
Gonzales v. Carhart
Gonzales v. Carhart, 550 U.S. 124 , is a United States Supreme Court case that upheld the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003. The case reached the high court after U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales appealed a ruling of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in favor of...
. She argued on behalf of the abortion provider LeRoy Carhart
Leroy Carhart
LeRoy Harrison Carhart is an American physician from Nebraska who became well known for his participation in the Supreme Court cases Stenberg v. Carhart and Gonzales v. Carhart, both of which dealt with intact dilation and extraction , a controversial abortion procedure.-Biography:Carhart is a...
, to challenge the constitutionality of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act
Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act
The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 is a United States law prohibiting a form of late-term abortion that the Act calls "partial-birth abortion", often referred to in medical literature as intact dilation and extraction...
, a federal law that forbids the practice of intact dilation and extraction
Intact dilation and extraction
Intact dilation and extraction is a procedure done in late term abortion. It is also known as intact dilation and evacuation, dilation and extraction , intrauterine cranial decompression and, vernacularly in the United States, as partial birth abortion...
. The Supreme Court, in the majority opinion authored by Justice Anthony Kennedy
Anthony Kennedy
Anthony McLeod Kennedy is an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Since the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, Kennedy has often been the swing vote on many of the Court's politically charged 5–4 decisions...
, upheld the law and ruled against Carhart.
She was also the attorney representing the pregnant women in the case Ferguson v. City of Charleston
Ferguson v. City of Charleston
Ferguson v. City of Charleston, , is a United States Supreme Court decision that found Medical University of South Carolina's policy regarding involuntary drug testing of pregnant women to violate the Fourth Amendment.-Facts:...
against a hospital policy of coercive drug testing on women who received prenatal treatment. The women who were tested positive were often arrested and imprisoned on child abuse
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
charges. In Ferguson she won the case and the hospital's practice of drug testing was declared unconstitutional by the court.