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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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Court Voids Abortion Clinic Buffer

The Supreme Court on Thursday struck down a 35-foot protest-free zone outside abortion clinics in Massachusetts. The justices were unanimous in ruling that extending a buffer zone 35 feet from clinic entrances violates the First Amendment rights of protesters. Chief Justice John Roberts said authorities have less intrusive ways to deal with problems outside the clinics. While the court was unanimous in the outcome, Roberts joined with the four liberal justices to strike down the buffer zone on narrow grounds. In a separate opinion, Justice Antonin Scalia criticized Roberts’ opinion for carrying forward “this court’s practice of giving abortion-rights advocates a pass when it comes to suppressing the free-speech rights of their opponents.”

Question: Do you agree/disagree with this decision?



D.F. Oliveria
D.F. (Dave) Oliveria joined The Spokesman-Review in 1984. He currently is a columnist and compiles the Huckleberries Online blog and writes about North Idaho in his Huckleberries column.

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