The Right Wing wants to go after women who have had abortions

By Carey Gillam
OVERLAND PARK, Kansas (Reuters) - The Kansas Supreme Court on Friday restricted efforts by Kansas' Attorney General to subpoena the medical records of women who have abortions in the state, requiring that their identities be protected.
In a case closely watched by both sides of the national debate over abortion rights, the court ruled that medical files subpoenaed by Attorney General Phill Kline must first be redacted to remove all identifying information about the women who had the abortions.
"We see today's decision as a significant victory for women's privacy," said Peter Brownlie, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri. "We don't mind being investigated. What we've said throughout this is that he doesn't have the right to investigate our patients."
Kline, a conservative Republican and outspoken opponent of abortion, subpoenaed the entire, unredacted patient files of 90 women and girls who obtained abortions at two Kansas clinics in 2003.
The Attorney General argued that he needed the files to investigate if late-term abortions were being illegally performed and if child abuse was a factor in a pregnancy.
A lower court judge denied a motion to quash the subpoenas but the clinics appealed the order. The court's ruling Friday said a release of unredacted files could violate privacy rights.
"The type of information sought by the state here could hardly be more sensitive, or the potential harm to patient privacy posed by disclosure more substantial," the court said in its ruling.
The case now goes back to the Shawnee County District Court for further action.
Kline's office said it was pleased with the ruling because it meant the investigation could proceed, albeit without identification of the women involved.
The court decision Friday is separate from another case in which abortion rights supporters are challenging Kline's formal written opinion that all sexual intercourse involving anyone younger than 16 is considered rape and could be prosecuted as a crime.
Arguments in that case were being heard Friday in Wichita, Kansas.