Many people don’t realize the loopholes that abortion clinics have and the impact those can have on pregnant women seeking help after they discover that they’re pregnant. One such loophole is the judicial bypass. This bypass allows teens to get an abortion without their parents knowing in states where parental consent is legally required.
Such stories appeared in The Chicago Tribune, “How Young Women in Illinois Get Abortions Without Parental Notification.” The cases unfold in careful confidentiality; you read about how most minors voluntarily involve parents in the decision to have an abortion, but there are those who don’t.
If they don’t want to get parental consent then they simply file a petition anonymously and meet with the judge in an empty courtroom, or in the judge’s chambers, and the judge knows her only as “Jane Doe.” The transcript and court records are sealed, and at the end of the hearing the young woman generally hurries home hoping her parents never know where she was. Kim recalls the story of one woman who told her about her judicial bypass experience:
“She said ‘I was sixteen years old. I had failed school and I was living on a friend’s couch. I had no job and I was pregnant, and the judge asked me one question: “are you mature enough to make this decision?” and when I said “yes.” Without knowing any of those circumstances of my life, I was handed a slip of paper that allowed me to destroy the life of my child.’”
To make a life decision like this teens need help and guidance, not a slip of paper handed to them with no real attempt to understand what is going on and what the teen really needs. Kim voices her thoughts,
“You know, the judicial bypass, in my opinion, is a counterfeit compassion. Because it says to a teenager ‘your parents don’t get it, but we do, so let us be the wise adults in your life.’ But of course then they’re not around to help pick up the pieces. And I understand that not every teenage girl has a good mom, a good dad, or good parents, I understand that, but did the judicial bypass puts people in the role of parent for a moment and then they fade away. How can that be right? How can that be a just thing to do to a young person?”
These are the kinds of questions that we need to ask ourselves and pray about. In a world where abortion is becoming more and more accepted and fought for, we, as Christians, need to know where we stand and be willing to fight for the unborn who are unable to stand up for themselves.
