WASHINGTON — After a bombshell Politico report that shared a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion suggesting Roe v. Wade could be overturned in the coming months, a D.C. anti-abortion activist now known for housing fetuses made a public appearance supporting the possible ruling. Lauren Handy joined throngs of protesters spanning all political persuasions Monday night encouraging those who would like to see the landmark SCOTUS ruling overturned to "keep fighting."
Back on March 30, officers responded shortly after noon to a Capitol Hill rowhouse where Handy was living to investigate a tip about potential bio-hazard material being stored in the house. Once inside, they located five fetuses, which were then collected by the D.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Handy's fellow activists ultimately claimed that those were just some of the 115 fetuses they recovered from a medical waste transportation company outside a D.C. clinic.
Before police discovered the fetuses, Handy was indicted along with eight others by a federal grand jury -- accused of felony "conspiracy against rights" for a blockade inside a D.C. abortion clinic in October 2020.
WUSA9's Casey Nolen spoke with Handy late Monday night outside of the high court, just after the draft opinion was published Monday suggesting the U.S. Supreme Court could be poised to overturn the landmark 1973 case that legalized abortion nationwide. Chief Justice John Roberts confirmed that the draft was authentic in a statement on Tuesday and promised an investigation into the leak.
"it's the beginning of the end . . . but we have to keep fighting," Handy said regarding the potential overturning. "We know the Supreme Court is swayed by public opinion, so we have to come out with mass mobilization and people power to say that the reversal of Roe v. Wade is good and it will save lives. They should keep going forward with the majority opinion."
Politico's report late Monday represented an extremely rare breach of the court’s secretive deliberation process, and on a case of surpassing importance.
“Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” the draft opinion states.
It was signed by Justice Samuel Alito, a member of the court’s 6-3 conservative majority who was appointed by former President George W. Bush.
The document was labeled a “1st Draft” of the “Opinion of the Court” in a case challenging Mississippi’s ban on abortion after 15 weeks, a case known as Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
President Joe Biden said Tuesday that the “basic fairness and the stability of our law demand" that the U.S. Supreme Court not overturn Roe v. Wade and said he would work to codify the right to abortion into federal law.
Shortly after, Chief Justice Roberts said he would direct the marshal of the Supreme Court to launch an investigation into the source of the leaked draft opinion.
The court is expected to rule on the case before its term ends in late June or early July.
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