Supreme Court abortion case brings 19th century chastity law to the forefront

 References from conservative justices to a long-dormant chastity law during the Supreme Court’s arguments in a major abortion pill case this week are bringing new attention to the 19th century statute, which prohibits the mailing of drugs used for abortions among other “obscene, lewd, lascivious” or “indecent” materials.The Comstock Act, as the law is known, is not central to the current Supreme Court case. However, comments from Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito showcase how the law is shaping up to be both a flashpoint in the legal battle over abortion and a potential election-year issue for voters.There are now calls from within the anti-abortion movement for the Comstock Act to be enforced by the next Republican administration to ban the mailing of abortion medication – a move that would not require any action by Congress nor any blessing from the Supreme Court.  But there is uncertainty and disagreement among anti-abortion advocates about what that means. Some prominent figures in the anti-abortion movement dismiss the possibility that it would be used to effectively ban medication abortion, which depends on the shipment of abortion drugs to providers, even as other abortion foes have said the law – interpreted to its fullest extent – could potentially end not only medication abortion, but abortion altogether.Abortion rights supporters argue that their opponents are over reading the law and are ringing alarm bells, as at least some justices on the Supreme Court appear to be entertaining a maximalist interpretation of the law’s reach.Alito wrote the court’s opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, while Thomas is seen as a judicial pioneer in his success in bringing into the legal mainstream views previously seen as fringe. Their interest in the law’s relevance to Tuesday’s case speaks to how the Comstock Act has taken a more prominent role in the efforts to further limit abortion.