In a 4-3 ruling that came as little surprise to many political observers, the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s liberal majority struck down the state’s 176-year-old abortion ban on July 3, 2025. The decision, which has serious moral and spiritual implications, represents a profound shift in the legal landscape for the protection of unborn life in the state—and a direct challenge to the dignity of human life upheld by Catholic teaching.
The 1849 law, which made it a felony to “destroy an unborn child,” was widely understood to be a near-total abortion ban. It had remained dormant during the Roe v. Wade era but was never formally repealed. Following the overturning of Roe in 2022, many believed the ban had been reactivated. Wisconsin’s Democratic Attorney General, Josh Kaul, challenged that interpretation in court, arguing that more recent laws passed under Roe’s protection had effectively replaced the ban.
According to Justice Rebeca Dallet, writing for the liberal majority, “That comprehensive legislation so thoroughly covers the entire subject of abortion that it was clearly meant as a substitute for the 19th century near-total ban on abortion.” She added that newer laws, such as a 1985 statute permitting abortions until viability—around 21 weeks—along with other procedural restrictions, had implicitly superseded the older ban.
For Catholics, this decision is a devastating blow to the ongoing effort to defend life from the moment of conception. The Church teaches that “human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception” (CCC 2270). Legal measures that once reflected this respect have now been swept away, not by a vote of the people, but by judicial activism.
Justice Annette Ziegler, in her dissent, accused the court of abandoning its duty to interpret law in favor of ideological results. “Put bluntly, our court has no business usurping the role of the legislature, inventing legal theories on the fly in order to make four justices’ personal preference the law,” she wrote. She called the ruling “a jaw-dropping exercise of judicial will,” according to the Associated Press.
Despite public outcry from pro-life organizations, the liberal majority signaled early on that the ruling was likely. Justice Janet Protasiewicz had openly campaigned on a pro-abortion platform, and Justice Jill Karofsky called the ban a “death warrant” during oral arguments. Justice Dallet criticized the law’s origins, noting it was “authored by white men who held all the power in the 19th century.”
For those committed to the Catholic faith, the moral issue is not a matter of gender or historical context but of eternal truths. The dignity of the human person does not change with time. “Laws which legitimize the direct killing of innocent human beings by abortion are in complete opposition to the inviolable right to life proper to all human beings,” Evangelium Vitae reminds us.
According to AP VoteCast, a majority of Wisconsin voters in 2024 (62%) said abortion should be legal in all or most cases. But Catholics are called to uphold moral truth even when public opinion swings in the opposite direction. As Pope John Paul II warned, “The value of democracy stands or falls with the values which it embodies and promotes.”
Pro-life leaders voiced frustration. Heather Weininger of Wisconsin Right to Life said the ruling was “deeply disappointing” and criticized the justices for failing to identify any law that explicitly repealed the 1849 ban. “To assert that a repeal is implied is to legislate from the bench,” she said, according to the Associated Press.
Kaul, meanwhile, called the decision “a major victory for reproductive rights,” and Planned Parenthood’s Michelle Velasquez said it creates “stability” for providers—though she signaled the organization may next target the remaining restrictions on abortion in the state.
The political battle is far from over. Another state Supreme Court seat is up for election in 2026, and former Planned Parenthood policy director Chris Taylor has already launched her campaign, celebrating the ruling as a “huge victory.” Her opponent, Justice Rebecca Bradley, decried the decision in strong terms, writing that the majority acted like “super legislators” and committed “an affront to democracy.”
For Catholic voters and pro-life advocates in Wisconsin and across the nation, this ruling is not just a legal or political setback—it is a call to action. It reminds us that while the courts may change the law, they cannot change what is morally right. The struggle to protect the unborn continues in the courtroom, in the legislature, and most importantly, in the hearts and consciences of the faithful.
