From today's North Dakota Supreme Court decision in Wrigley v. Romanick, written by Chief Justice Jon Jensen, joined by Justices Daniel Crothers and Lisa Fair McEvers, and by District Judge Daniel Narum, sitting by designation (in place of Justice Douglas Bahr, who was recused):
[W]e conclude RRWC has a substantial likelihood in establishing there is a fundamental right for a woman to obtain an abortion in instances where it is necessary to preserve her life or health. We need go no further here to determine whether there are fundamental rights broader in scope.
"Our overriding objective is to give effect to the intent and purpose of the people adopting the constitutional statement." To accomplish this we must construe the constitution in light of the contemporaneous history existing at and prior to the adoption of the constitutional provision.
North Dakota Constitution article I, section 1 was enacted in 1889 when North Dakota was admitted as a state to the Union. Section 1 provides, in part, "[a]ll individuals are by nature equally free and independent and have certain inalienable rights, among which are those of enjoying and defending life and liberty; acquiring, possessing and protecting property and reputation; pursuing and obtaining safety and happiness[.]" N.D. Const. art. I, § 1. The North Dakota Constitution explicitly provides all citizens of North Dakota the right of enjoying and defending life and pursuing and obtaining safety. These rights implicitly include the right to obtain an abortion to preserve the woman's life or health.
