SUPREME COURT NOTEBOOK

Justices say women must obtain abortion pill in person

By Mark Sherman
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court ordered Tuesday that women must visit a doctor’s office, hospital or clinic in person to obtain an abortion pill during the COVID-19 pandemic, though similar rules for other drugs have been suspended during the public health emergency.

Eight days before President Donald Trump leaves office, the justices granted a Trump administration appeal to be able to enforce a longstanding rule on getting the abortion pill, mifepristone. The pill need not be taken in the presence of medical professionals.

The court split 6-3, with the liberal justices in dissent. The new administration could put the in-person requirement on hold after Joe Biden takes office on Jan. 20.

A federal judge had suspended the rule since July because of the coronavirus, in response to a lawsuit from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and other groups.

U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang affirmed the suspension of the rule in December, saying public health risks for patients had increased as COVID-19 cases soared.

The Food and Drug Administration approved mifepristone to be used in combination with a second drug, misoprostol, to end an early pregnancy or manage a miscarriage.

The administration has suspended similar in-person visits for other drugs, including opioids in some cases, but refused to relax the rules for getting the abortion pill.

In October, the Supreme Court allowed women to continue getting the abortion pill by mail but deferred any substantive ruling. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas said they would have granted the administration’s request then.

At the time, there were only eight justices on the court, as Justice Amy Coney Barrett had been nominated, but not yet confirmed. Barrett took the seat of Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsburg, who died in September.


Split verdict conviction tossed for ex-NFL star’s killer

By Kevin McGill
Associated Press

The U.S. Supreme Court has thrown out the manslaughter conviction for the man who shot former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith to death in 2016.

Monday’s order in favor of Cardell Hayes had been expected. In December 2017, a jury convicted Hayes by a vote of 10-2 on charges of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter in the death of Smith and the wounding of Smith’s wife, who was struck in the leg by gunfire. But the Supreme Court has since ruled that such convictions must be unanimous.

A state appeals court gets the case next but, ultimately, it will be up to the new district attorney in New Orleans, Jason Williams, to decide whether to put Hayes, 33, on trial again. Hayes is serving a 25-year sentence.

The shootings followed arguments after a traffic crash. Hayes said he shot in self-defense. A state appeals court rejected that argument.

Surveillance video from the night of the shooting showed Smith’s Mercedes SUV possibly bumping Hayes’ Hummer, then driving off. Hayes followed them and rammed his vehicle into Smith’s. Both then got out and argued in the street.

Hayes insisted at trial that he fired after a drunk, angry Smith retrieved a gun from his car and fired first. But Hayes was the only witness to say Smith held a gun or fired it. A handgun was found loaded but unused in Smith’s car.

Williams’ office issued a release noting the Supreme Court action on the Hayes case and another, lesser known, split-verdict case in Louisiana. It said both cases “will receive thorough review and a decision in the coming weeks on the best way to proceed under the law to deliver justice.”

Smith, a 34-year-old father of three, was a defensive leader on the Saints team that lifted spirits in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. He helped carry the team to a winning season in 2006 and a Super Bowl victory in 2010.

Hayes, 33, who owned a tow-truck business, had played semi-pro football and is the father of a young son.