BILLINGS— Activists on both sides praised and criticized the Wyoming Supreme Court’s ruling of abortion bans as unconstitutional on Tuesday in a 4-1 majority.

The ruling marks the end of a four-year legal battle in Wyoming since the state’s 2022 abortion ban went in place with the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, which overturned abortion rights on a federal level.

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Activists react after Wyoming high court rules abortion ban unconstitutional

The ban was put on hold after Wyoming’s only abortion clinic, Wellspring Health Access in Casper, led a suit against the state.

“I was holding my breath as I opened it and read it. But soon that turned to being rather elated. We couldn’t be more pleased with the opinion,” said Julie Burkhart, the clinic’s president.

The decision comes after a years-long fight and setbacks, including an arsonist who set the clinic on fire in May of 2022.

“We were set to open that next month, but unfortunately that arson set us back by 11 months. We weren’t able to open that until 2023. It was quite devastating,” said Burkhart.

“I don’t think it’s moral, ethical, appropriate for anyone to tell another person what they can or cannot do with their own body,” she added.

Wellspring Health Access

For a Montana advocacy group, it was a different story.

“I was very disappointed,” said Amy Seymour, president of Yellowstone Valley Christians for Life, an anti-abortion advocacy group.

“These pre-born children who are unique, complete, living, individual human beings from the moment of their conception, they can be protected if Wyoming decides to have a constitutional amendment to that degree,” she added.

Vanessa Willardson

Wyoming state Speaker of the House Chip Neiman, a Republican, echoed Seymour’s sentiments with a written statement.

“Today’s decision is an abomination. Four unelected justices thwarted the will of the people to establish a ‘right’ to kill an innocent baby. Thanks to these justices, Wyoming has some of the most radical abortion laws in America. I will not stand for that, and will continue fighting for innocent unborn babies,” said Neiman.

Wyoming Supreme Court strikes down abortion bans, keeping procedure legal

As a plaintiff in the 2022 lawsuit that kicked off years of legal sparring over Wyoming abortion rights, Dr. Giovannina Anthony had waited a long time for Tuesday’s Supreme Court decision on the state’s abortion bans.

“It has been a long road,” she said. One with ups and downs, drawbacks and delays. And even though the high court ruled against the state’s abortion bans, she’s not under the illusion that the fight for abortion access is over. 

“But at least today, we can claim a victory and say, it was really worth it,” said Anthony, a Jackson obstetrician. “It was worth it to go four years and keep it up and keep raising money and keep the awareness going. I’m really proud of our team. I’m really proud of what we accomplished.”

In reading the Supreme Court’s decision siding with plaintiffs, Anthony said, “Clearly, this is a court that holds a lot of respect for our constitution.” 

That’s because much of the decision hinged on constitutional language. 

Anthony and other plaintiffs argued that abortion is enshrined in the “right of health care access” in Article 1, Section 38 of the Wyoming Constitution. The clause states, “Each competent adult shall have the right to make his or her own health care decisions.”

The state’s attorneys, meanwhile, countered that abortion isn’t health care. 

But in deciding what that language means in this case, “all five Wyoming Supreme Court justices agreed that the decision whether to terminate or continue a pregnancy is a woman’s own health care decision protected by Article 1, Section 38,” the court’s summary stated.

As abortion rights activists in Wyoming and beyond celebrated the decision, the anti-abortion camp decried it and called for legislative action. 

“This ruling is profoundly unfortunate and sadly serves to only prolong the ultimate proper resolution of this issue,” Gov. Mark Gordon said in a statement. While the ruling may settle a legal question for the time being, Gordon said, “it does not settle the moral one, nor does it reflect where many Wyoming citizens stand, including myself.”

Gordon asked the Attorney General’s office to file a petition for rehearing the decision, which it will file within 15 days.

The voters of Wyoming should settle the matter once and for all, Gordon argued. “A constitutional amendment taken to the people of Wyoming would trump any and all judicial decisions.”

He called on the Legislature to pass such an amendment during the upcoming session and deliver it to his desk. A constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate to appear on the ballot in the following general election. 

Gordon may get his wish during the Legislature’s 2026 budget session, which convenes Feb. 9.

State lawmakers are already preparing a bill to modify the Wyoming Constitution and clear a path for another attempted abortion ban. Speaker of the House Chip Neiman, a Republican from Hulett, said that he’s been workshopping language with Torrington Republican Sen. Cheri Steinmetz. 

“I’ve got to run it by a lot of other people,” Neiman said. 

Ideally, he added, a single constitutional amendment would be considered, although the legislative strategy is still up for discussion. 

“We’ve got a little over a month before we have to be in session,” Neiman said. “That’ll give us time to kind of see which is maybe the best plan of action.” 

A constitutional amendment would have to navigate the legislative process in a 20-day session geared toward passing Wyoming’s budget. Then, in the 2026 general election, more than half of Wyoming voters who cast a ballot would have to agree to the constitutional change.

Neiman struck an optimistic tone about an amendment’s prospects of passing the first hurdle during the session in Cheyenne.

“I can’t speak for the other chamber,” he said, “but in my chamber I’ve got a lot of phone calls and a lot of texts from a lot of my legislators who are just beside themselves at what happened.”

Senate President Bo Biteman did not return a phone call before this story published.

Victorious 

Chelsea’s Fund, an organization that helps pay for abortion services, was another of the plaintiffs that challenged Wyoming’s abortion bans. Executive Director Janean Forsyth said Tuesday’s decision affirms what her organization has long known: “that abortion is essential health care, and Wyoming women have a constitutional right and the freedom to make their own health care decisions, and that should be without government interference.”

Forsyth was flooded with messages and calls Tuesday, she said, especially from the community of reproductive rights organizations. 

“I think that [the news is] a beacon of hope for, not only Wyoming communities and families, but also nationwide,” she said. 

Christine Lichtenfels was Chelsea’s Fund executive director when the original suit was filed and throughout much of the legal battle. Relief wasn’t quite the word to describe how she felt Tuesday, she said. 

“In reading the decision, there is just a sense that, ‘Oh, there is reason in the world,” she said. “It makes me think that, yes, Wyoming is the Equality State. We can say that now without cringing.” 

(Disclosure: Lichtenfels is currently working with WyoFile on an unrelated legal matter.)

Wyoming’s only abortion clinic, Wellspring Health Access in Casper, was also a plaintiff in the lawsuit. Knowing the decision would directly impact the facility’s fate, Clinic President Julie Burkhart was nervous when she opened it. Reading quickly dispelled her fears, she said, as it dawned on her that the justices sided with the plaintiffs’ legal team. 

“We are delighted,” she told WyoFile.  

Many people questioned her 2021 decision to open an abortion clinic in such a conservative state, she said. The court decision solidifies an intuition she felt back then about Wyoming residents’ sense of what’s fair and right. 

Burkhart and colleagues expect future challenges to arise, however. 

“While we celebrate today’s ruling, we know that anti-abortion politicians will continue their push to restrict access to health care in Wyoming with new, harmful proposals in the state legislature,” Burkart said in a statement. “Patients should not have to live in fear that their health care decisions will be suddenly upended at the whim of a judge or lawmaker.”

Across the state in Jackson, Dr. Anthony anticipates the Wyoming Freedom Caucus will attempt to pass laws that impose targeted restrictions against abortion providers — such as forcing patients to hear a fetal heartbeat or wait a certain time period before the procedure. 

“Unfortunately, the fight’s not over,” Anthony said, “but this is a great moment for us.”

Heartache 

Abortion opponents expressed sadness Tuesday and vehemently disagreed with the court’s opinion. 

State Rep. Rachel Rodriguez Williams was lead sponsor of one of the abortion bans. The Cody Republican and chair of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus did not respond to a request for comment, but posted about the decision on X. 

“My heart aches for Wyoming today,” Rodriguez Williams posted. “Thanks to the decision of four unelected, unchecked attorneys, it’s open season in Wyoming for innocent, preborn babies. Make no mistake: courts can get things wrong, and they sure did get this wrong. I’ll never stop fighting to protect life.”

Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray also protested the decision, which he called “outrageously wrong” and “a leftwing activist decision totally out of touch with the Wyoming Constitution.”

Natrona County anti-abortion activist Bob Brechtel, a former Wyoming House member, also expressed frustration with the courts, criticizing the nearly two-year-long wait for a decision and saying he was “ashamed” of the outcome from the high court. 

In 2011, Brechtel co-sponsored the bill authorizing a later-successful constitutional amendment ballot measure that now protects individuals’ rights to make their own health care decisions. Born out of opposition to the Obama-era Affordable Care Act, what became Article 1, Section 38 caused some lawmakers to worry about potential unintended consequences. 

Fifteen years later, one unintended consequence came to fruition. Reached Tuesday, Brechtel confirmed that he did not intend to protect women’s right to have an abortion in Wyoming. 

“There was nothing in the legislation about killing innocent human beings,” he said. “This whole thing has been completely regenerated into something that it was never intended to be.”