Not as Bad as You Think:
The 2007 Maryland Court of Appeals on the Sanctity of Human Life and Judicial Restraint
Summary of the Maryland Court of Appeals Whitepaper
For a PDF copy of the full Maryland Whitepaper, please click here
Despite Maryland’s liberal slant, there may be a significant window to protect the unborn opening in the jurisprudence and potential future makeup of Maryland’s highest court.
Life Issues
Abortion
Prior to Roe v. Wade, Maryland law restricted abortions in most cases and the Court actively prosecuted and convicted abortionists under the law. In 1992, a general referendum confirmed a statute enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland that expressly permitted abortion with vague and unenforced exceptions. While the Court has not addressed this statute, it continues to rely heavily on the trimester framework found in common law and Roe in its decisions related to the life of the unborn child and the right of parents.
Protection of the Unborn from Criminal Violence
Despite conflicting claims as to how to interpret English common law pertaining to manslaughter involving the unborn as it existed in 1776, the Court in Williams v. State of Maryland, found a cause of action for manslaughter of an infant, born alive, who later dies from injuries inflicted in utero. The Court found a cause of action for a viable fetus who was stillborn in State v. Sherman, and for a non-viable fetus born alive in Damasiewicz v. Gorsuch; but, in State v. Sherman, the Court declined to extend this right to a non-viable fetus who was stillborn. In Coleman v. Coleman, the Court of Special Appeals established that Maryland laws prohibiting abortion were superseded by Roe v. Wade, concluding that common law provided no right to the unborn child until viability. In Kilmon v. State of Maryland, the Court interpreted the Maryland legislature as not intending the crime of reckless endangerment to apply to a woman with respect to her unborn child.
Assisted Suicide
In Fister v. Allstate Life Insurance Company, a case involving a life insurance dispute over whether a rigged shotgun fired by a friend was suicide or homicide, the Court followed the plain and ordinary meaning of the word suicide and concluded it was homicide.
Cloning and Destructive Embryo Research
Maryland law provides funding of embryonic stem cell research projects, but the Court has not addressed this issue.
Judicial Restraint
The judicial restraint of the Court is in a state of flux with four justices sharply divided on the issue and the remaining three in the middle. Chief Judge Bell is an activist who has usurped legislative privilege, executive delegation power and, in the area of same sex-marriage, snatched appeals from the intermediate appellate court. By contrast, Judge Battaglia, the second most junior member of the Court, is a strong advocate of the separation of powers doctrine and follows a conservative approach to interpreting statutes as illustrated in Fister. Insights into the justices’ approach to the separation of powers doctrine can be gleaned from Schisler v. State where the majority struck down provisions of a bill addressing an electrical energy crisis that usurped the executive’s power of appointment.
The Court
The Maryland Court of Appeals, the highest tribunal in the state, was created by the Constitution of 1776 and is composed of seven judges, one from each of the seven circuits, with the Chief Judge designated by the Governor. Members serve a 10-year term after being appointed by the Governor, confirmed by the Senate, and approved by the voters. The Maryland Court of Appeals Whitepaper contains a table of biographical information for each current member of the Court.
For a PDF copy of the full Maryland Whitepaper, please click here