The Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (MACDL) is deeply troubled by the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. This decision will have a profound impact on both our clients and members, as well as on the integrity of the legal process.
The Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade is not only an intrusion into the bodily autonomy of people who can become pregnant but is a direct call for the criminalization of personal health care decisions. The decision invites states to prosecute not only people who receive abortions for homicide but also the doctors who perform abortions, and those who support those receiving abortions. Prosecutors across the country have been given yet another tool to punish and incarcerate people from underserved communities who have limited options for medical care. There is no doubt that this criminalization of personal health care decisions will disproportionately affect people and communities who are already over policed and over prosecuted.
“Fair and Just Prosecution,” a network of elected local prosecutors, released a letter on June 24, 2022, signed by over 80 prosecutors from around the country agreeing not to use their offices’ resources to criminalize reproductive health decisions and committing to refraining from prosecuting those who seek, provide, or support abortions. MACDL applauds all the signers, especially those from Massachusetts: Maura Healy, Attorney General; Andrea Harrington, District Attorney Berkshire County; Michael W. Morrissey, District Attorney Norfolk County; Marian Ryan, District Attorney Middlesex County; and David Sullivan, District Attorney Northwestern District. We urge the remaining Massachusetts prosecutors (Thomas Quinn, Bristol County District Attorney, Jonathan W. Blodgett, Essex County District Attorney, Timothy Cruz, Plymouth County District Attorney, Michael O’Keefe, Cape & Islands District Attorney, Anthony Gulluni, Hampden County District Attorney, Kevin Hayden, Suffolk County District Attorney and Joseph Early, Worcester County District Attorney) to join their colleagues in committing to exercise their discretion in a way that protects the wellbeing and safety of people seeking abortion services and those who provide and support these services.
We would also like to thank Governor Charlie Baker for his June 24, 2022 Executive Order which prohibits any Massachusetts state agency from assisting another state’s investigation into a person or entity for receiving or delivering reproductive health services that are legal in Massachusetts. The order also protects Massachusetts providers who deliver reproductive health care services from losing their professional licenses or receiving other professional discipline based on potential out of state charges. Under the executive order, the Commonwealth will not cooperate with extradition requests from other states pursuing criminal charges against individuals who received, assisted with, or performed reproductive health services that are legal in Massachusetts.
As the only statewide organization dedicated to providing support for criminal defense lawyers in their representation of people of accused of crimes, and to protecting the individual rights of the citizens of the Commonwealth as guaranteed by the Declaration of Rights of the Massachusetts Constitution and the United States Constitution, MACDL demands that the criminal legal system strive for equality and fairness, and opposes any efforts that interfere with those ideals.
Sincerely,
Shira Diner
President-Elect